


Love Me Just The Same

by CadomirBane



Series: Azure Devil [3]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Anakin has bpd, Heavy Angst, M/M, Medical Kink, Mustafar Palace, Post-Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Pre-Star Wars: A New Hope, Rough Sex, Smut, Switching, gay old men
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-01
Updated: 2017-07-20
Packaged: 2018-09-14 01:44:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 11
Words: 22,059
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9151315
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CadomirBane/pseuds/CadomirBane
Summary: Before he was Vader, Anakin Skywalker had a tumultuous on-and-off fling with the bounty hunter Cad Bane. Years later, Vader will do whatever it takes to get Bane back. This is shaping up to be a dark Beauty and the Beast AU..





	1. Chapter 1

The palace on Mustafar had been constructed almost ten years ago to the day.

It had been the Emperor’s idea, of course.He saved no expense.They both knew why it was here.Darth Vader loathed Mustafar and everything it reminded him of.

And that was exactly why he was meant to be here.

Vader felt the bacta trickling through what was left of his body.His limbs constantly ached in some shape or form, his skin always itching in a way that never let him really get used to it.It was just a matter of either blocking out or accepting the pain.Nine times out of ten, he accepted it.Now that he was back on Mustafar, he would take all the pain he could get.

It was the least of what he deserved.All the memories.All the nightmares.

The room was painfully bright.Sidious had constructed a mirror directly across from the tank so that whenever Vader looked ahead, he would see his own reflection.A perfect reminder of the horrid monster he truly was.That his appearance matched the soul inside…charred, shattered, broken, more machine than human.

Disgusting.

He hated seeing his reflection.That was why he always looked at it.No one would ever desire him now.Not that he deserved it.

Mustafar.The gravesite of Anakin Skywalker, the slave and the Chosen One.Anakin Skywalker, who couldn’t save any of his loved ones.Anakin Skywalker, who lost everything.The place where his body was disfigured and the nightmares of fire he had had for so many years became real.

It was also the gravesite of Padmé.He killed her here.She was supposed to be the one who lived 

Vader closed his eyes and began to see lava around him.Swarming, raining down, rising in waves only to crash down.The flames rising up on his flesh, tearing through muscle, the stench of his own burning body filling his damaged lungs.He felt hollow screams in his throat but did not hear them.

Padmé looked up at him, eyes wide, hands around her own throat.

_“I don’t know you anymore!You’re breaking my heart!”_

Lies.All lies.They all turned against him and proved they couldn’t be trusted.That ways the way it had always gone.Over and over, it happened sooner or later.

Padmé, Obi-Wan, Ahsoka… _all_ of them hated him in the end and abandoned him.Abandoned the Chosen One, anyway.Vader was the one who abandoned them first.

Fire consuming him.Eating away at his flesh, flooding down his throat until he could not scream any longer, gnawing at his eyes.

With a gasp, his eyes shot open.

Just another nightmare.

Fire awaited him whenever he closed his eyes.He nodded at the droid in the corner of the room and it hit the switch that began to drain the bacta from the tank.Cold air washed over him.Vader looked up at the ceiling, still trembling from the nightmare.

“Lord Vader…?” a small voice asked.His servant knelt before the tank.

Vader snapped his head back at him and heard his thoughts constructed in that horrid voice that was not his own.

“You’re late.”

“Y-Yes, my lord.My ship was delayed before takeoff.Please forgive me.”

Why did Sidious give him someone so pathetic?Couldn’t even deliver a simple errand.Vader’s hand twitched slightly and he watched the servant fall over, neck broken.

“You’re forgiven.”

The droids rushed to him and began to help reattach the mechno limbs.

“Lord Vader, shall we find a replacement for him?” they asked, regarding the dead body at the entrance to the room.

“Not yet.I need someone more efficient than he was.”

“I’ll start searching immediately, Lord Vader.”One of the droids scurried off.

Vader held back a sigh.When he was fully back in his suit, he was lowered to the floor and the cape fastened to his shoulders.He stepped down the hall to his personal quarters that overlooked the vast deathly lands of Mustafar.The palace had everything a dark Lord of the Sith could ask for.Fancy bedchambers with every accessory he needed, a hangar for storing all his personal ships, a databank with Imperial information at his fingertips, meeting halls, special rooms for treating Imperial guests if the Emperor so desired, and of course interrogation chambers.It should not come as a surprise to anyone that the last item on the list had been put to the most use since the palace’s construction.But to Vader, all of it still wasn’t quite enough for him.He needed to be able to show off the place he regarded as Vader’s true birthplace, not head back to it every time tail between his legs, just like Sidious wanted.He wanted to prove himself.

This wasn’t supposed to be spent alone.

The lava reflected on his helmet as he looked out and wished someone had warned him how terribly lonely the Dark Side could be.

* * *

Cad Bane no longer remembered how long he had been in Imperial prison.  Could have been weeks or months.  It did not matter.

What he did know was that they spent a while during his stay extracting any and all information they could out of him.They knew other circuits outside of Imperial control had hired him in the past.Paid him to deliver supplies and information to rebel cells.But he had never been part of the rebellion.Bane never cared who he was working for as long as they paid him well.Of course now he was the one paying dearly.

He was tortured almost nonstop.Electrocuted whenever he almost fell asleep so that he stayed awake for days on end.The pain never seemed to end, always taking new shapes and forms.Sometimes it broke bones, sometimes it tore flesh, sometimes it felt like he was being burned alive.When he was near death, they put him in a bacta tank so he would heal up enough for them to start all over again.

Bane didn’t break so easy under torture.But eventually, under torture administered by the Empire, almost anyone broke, and he was not an exception.He found himself starting to spill anything he knew that the Empire might want to hear from him.He talked a lot, as much as he could.The pain continued until he had nothing left to tell them, only pitiful pleas for a mercy killing.

Finally, what remained of him was dragged into a small cell.Plagued with pain,

exhaustion, and humiliation, all he could do was curl up on the floor and wait.Wait for what? Anything at all.When Bane could finally put his thoughts together he realized he was either going to be shipped off to a labor camp or be executed.At this point, he definitely preferred death.

Everything was agony.Everything had been taken from him…his spirit, his career, his strength.

He wanted to die.

The days went by so slowly in prison.In the early morning, they were given water and cold gruel.Later, if they were lucky, they were sent to work.Otherwise they were sent off on the transports that everyone knew headed for the nearest mining colony or execution chambers.So Bane found himself working around the prison.Usually shoveling corpses into the furnaces, bringing in new prisoners, or fixing broken down equipment.The work was long and the guards were cruel but he could take it far better than being isolated in a cell all the time.

Besides, this way he could take out his anger on the weaker prisoners.Even in his state, most of them figured out not to mess with him.

This went on and on, he did not know how long.All he knew was that at some point the routine began to feel normal.The screams of other prisoners in the background died out.He got so used to the awful food that it started to taste pretty good.And he wondered if he was ever going to get out of here.If they ever planned to put him to death at all.

He hated waiting.


	2. Chapter 2

Mustafar brought back more than just the deaths of Anakin and Padmé.

For Vader, he also remembered when he had arrived here during the Clone Wars.Back then, he had Snips with him, but she was long gone now.Specifically they had been sent to rescue Force-sensitive children from who he now knew was Lord Sidious.Cad Bane the bounty hunter had kidnapped them.

Remembering him made Vader began to seethe.Anakin had been in a…complicated relationship with Bane.They would fight, fuck, then get drunk together, only to fight again.It went on that way during most of the war.And there were plenty of variations, from Anakin visiting Bane in Jedi custody to give him a blowjob, to Bane selling Separatist information to him in exchange for a bottle of whiskey.

It always made Anakin guilty because even though he and Padmé had agreed to an open marriage, he kept Bane a secret.

Then Anakin died and the Jedi were extinct and he never saw Bane again.Just as well because who knew if Bane was even still alive now.Vader had heard rumors that non-Human bounty hunters were finding work hard to come by.Sometimes disappearing without a trace.Not that it bothered him.

Vader turned away and headed back to his bedchambers.

Bringing back old memories only angered him more.Otherwise, it was pointless.

“I can’t wait around forever, you know,” he scowled, waiting to hear his servant scurry timidly in the room…until he remembered his servant had died an hour ago.

Oh, well.That hopeless life form deserved to die anyway.

Now that his old servant was dead, he needed a new one, and quickly.There was always work to be done around Vader’s Palace.Not to mention for any time he needed a pilot or a messenger.

This time he wouldn’t wait for Sidious to send someone, either.

As if right on cue, the hologram went off.Vader adjusted his cape and answered it.

“Yes, my Master?” he asked, the words flowing so easily out of him that he had stopped thinking about it years ago.

Everything felt normal as long as he had a Master.Someone to tell him what to do.It was all Anakin had known, and now it was all Vader would know.

_“Have you reviewed the new bounty hunter recruits I sent to you?”_

_Ugh…_ Vader thought.

“Yes, Master.I was…not impressed with any of them.They are inefficient at their work and unprofessional.

Sidious arched an eyebrow.Oh, go figure.The best bounty hunters had been taken by the war, or scattered and killed by the Empire.All the new ones would shrivel under any pressure Imperial employments put them under.But that was to be expected when a new order arrived.

_“You do need one of your own personal mercenary on reserve soon, you know.We already discussed this.It will be more to your benefit if you have one to send out on private missions whenever you need them.Not to mention having them as an official employee under your command will save on other expenses.”_

Vader hated conversations like this.Like he gave a damn about _expenses_.

“I know, Master.”He clenched both fists where Sidious couldn’t see them.

_“I’ll send one last group for you to look over.If none of them can impress you, I honestly don’t know who will,”_ he said dryly, and Vader could not help but flinch, since such a tone almost always preceded a well deserved punishment.

“I apologize for the wait, Master.But I need to know they will be capable of the work I ask them to do.”

_“See to finding one soon.”_ And with that Sidious’ hologram vanished.

If only another servant were around Vader could toss about like a ragdoll.He hated this pent-up rage.Droids were already too boring to destroy.

The only bounty hunter who had ever really done it for Vader—or Anakin, that is—was Cad Bane.Gods, no one could make him so pissed off like Bane did.No one could make him feel so much pain and pleasure at once.No one could make his body feel so whole again.

Maybe Padmé had but that was another story…

But Bane had to be dead.No one had heard from him in almost two years.If he wasn’t dead, he was lost.

Vader looked out to the lava again and wondered.Would it be worth finding out for sure?

He snapped his fingers and one of the droids appeared, spinning around the corner.

“Yes, Lord Vader?” they asked, tinny voice echoing off the walls over a hundred feet high.They reminded Vader of the old ancient palaces of Naboo.But these were built different.They had been designed to block out any light, to house all sorts of secrets below, and remind Vader of his place.The darkness had begun to felt comforting to him.It was his home now.

A crude set of candles stood in the center of a grand black hall, illuminating the droid’s small build.Vader had made custom designs for his own servant droids that could do everything he needed—ship navigation, repairs, medical procedures, and of course interrogation.This particular droid was named G2-781.

“Find me a new servant and be sure they are actually efficient at their work.”

“What do you mean, my Lord?” G2 asked, white eyes flickering with calculations, build dirtied with hyperdrive oil.

Inside Vader smiled a little.

“Allow me to provide you with some details.”

* * *

One morning, Bane woke up early, more sore than usual.  He had had more nightmares than usual, filled with memories of the earliest horrors he witnessed as a bounty hunter.  And what little he remembered of prison so far.

By habit, he sat up and scratched the dried blood from the newest lashes on his shoulders and upper back.The major had stopped by the prison to survey and she was a new definition of stone-cold bitch.Bane loathed that-white skin and red lips, that sadistic smile.Everyone hated her, and she knew it.Sometimes Bane fantasized about how he would kill her given the chance.

As he waited for water and gruel to arrive, he closed his eyes and tried to remember a happier time before the Empire, even before the Clone Wars.Perhaps when he was a much younger bounty hunter who seemingly had the galaxy at his fingertips, a bright future ahead of him, with enough credits to keep him going but not too much that he worried they would be taken away from him.It felt like eons ago.Now he was much older and slowly fading.

A guard pounded a rifle on his cell, startling him.Food wouldn’t arrive for at least twenty more minutes.The door opened and two stormtroopers entered.

“Get up,” one snapped.

_Shit…they’ve finally gotten around to killing me, haven’t they?_ Bane thought.

They cuffed him and dragged him down the hall, then outside to a ship.He had not seen natural daylight in a long time.It hurt his eyes like fire.The large prison walls loomed behind them contrasting the white armor of the guards.He realized they were walking him down a landing platform to a ship he couldn’t see in too much light.Once inside, he was forced to kneel on the floor of the ship, guards on either side.

In spite of himself, Bane felt sobs in the back of his throat.Not out of sorrow, but relief.That it was finally going to end.That it was over.

He had waited long enough.He looked forward to dying.

One of the guards put a cloth bag over his head.Bane gasped in alarm as he felt the ship lift off.Why the hell did they need to blind him if he was about to die?

“What’s going on?” he dared ask.

_Please kill me.Please just kill me,_ he silently pleaded.

“Shut up.”One of them hit him hard on the back.

Bane did not say another word after that.After roughly an hour they took him to a small cell in the back of the ship.He paced around, breathing through the cloth bag, fear starting to rob him of the old relief.This trip was taking way too long.What did they want with him?He had given them everything they could take from him, except his own life.

Frustrated and desperate for it to end, he laid on the floor and tried to think of anything that would pass the time.Nothing worked except restless, feverish sleep.

Delirium from constant dehydration, illness, and exhaustion made the trip seem to go even longer.To Bane it felt like weeks when it was only a few days.They barely gave him enough food and water to sustain himself.When the ship finally landed, Bane was too weak to get up and he had to be dragged from his cell.

“What are you doing to me?” he begged.

“Enough!You’re not going to speak to him unless spoken to.Understand?”

_Speak to who?What’s going on?!_

Cloth bag still on, Bane suddenly felt very warm.He could hear what sounded like roaring water…no…lava.Mustafar?He hadn’t been there in over a dozen years.But he had never heard that sound from another place again.

At long last, one of the guards snatched the cloth off his head and Bane looked up.He began to tremble with terror.

Standing in front of them was a gigantic black palace, towers piercing the storming skies of Mustafar, lava raging around them.

Bane couldn’t breathe.

“Wait…where…”Before he could put together a coherent sentence, the doors swung open and he was dragged inside.The darkness greeted him lovingly, as opposed to the blinding light.He looked in front of them and saw a long hallway illuminated only by a few candles.

He frowned and glanced at the guards, more confused than scared now.

Then the door at the other end of the hall opened and Bane saw a silhouette that should have only been in his nightmares.The guards’ only words as they bowed confirmed his worst fear.

“Lord Vader…we’ve brought him.”


	3. Chapter 3

The figure of Lord Vader stepped closer, the edges of his cape just barely brushing the floor.His mask glowed in what little candlelight there was.

“You’ve…brought him?” Vader echoed mockingly.

The guards glanced at each other and one of them hit Bane in the back of the legs, sending him to the floor.

“On your knees,” the guard snapped, then looked up at Vader.“Yes, my Lord.We found Cad Bane and delivered him to you as you requested.”

_Oh, great…so Vader is overseeing my execution or something?_ He knew it had been too much to ask for a short and sweet death.This was the Empire, after all…go figure.

Bane trembled with terror.He had heard the horror stories of what Darth Vader could do to a hundred men at once.What rebel prisoners looked like after Vader tortured them.But he had always considered they were exaggerated, as legends are.After all, who would have lived to tell the tale of Vader’s mass murders anyway?But yet, here he was, as frightening as the stories claimed.

Looked even taller in real life.

Vader took a couple more steps, head tilting down to look down at him.Bane saw his own eyes, wide with fear, reflected on the black mask.Chills ran up his spine to the base of his neck.Now he understood why people were so terrified of this man.

No.Not man. _Monster._

“Where did you find him?” the monster pressed.

“In the Imperial detention facility on Stygeon Prime.He had been an inmate for almost four hundred days.He was arrested for delivering information about security on the private locations of Imperial generals and their families.His behavioral record is—”

“ _What’s the matter with him_!”Vader’s voice rang loud.It echoed off the walls.They all flinched, as if the voice itself could kill, and one of the candles went out.

“Sir…?”

Vader waved his hand at the weakened Duros in front of him.Bane looked down at the floor, suddenly embarrassed.

“You bring him to me when he’s nearly dead?He cannot even stand up on his own and he’s nothing but skin and bones.I asked for a bounty hunter, not a medbay patient!”

“But, my Lord—”

He waved his hand twice more and both guards began to choke and gag like they could not breathe.Bane looked up and saw them clutching at their throats.This sort of thing had happened before when Bane dueled Jedi, only he had been smart enough to use breathing tubes to avoid such a suffocating fate.In seconds both guards dropped to the floor, dead.

Swearing with the severest of vulgarities in his native tongue, Bane would have held his own throat as if for futile protection were his hands not cuffed behind him.What could he do now?No, there was nothing to do.

“Well, Cad Bane?”Vader looked right at him.“Tell me how you ended up in prison.What made you lose the Empire’s favor?Tell me.Now!”

Bane’s eyes met his and the Duros man’s heart stopped for a moment.

“Honestly, I’ve never been a big fan of the Empire.Just took them a while to catch up with me.”

_I’m so fucked…_ Bane thought.

Vader snapped his fingers and a door to the side of the hall hissed open.A black and orange astromech, twin 6-2 repair droids with customized arms that gave them more abilities, and a 2-1B surgical droid rushed through the doorway.Bane was about to get up to see what was going on when he collapsed, too weak to move.

“You three!Take him to the medical bay immediately.I only wish to see him again when his health is stabilized.”And with that the monster disappeared through the same entrance he appeared in, gone in an instant.

Bane stared in disbelief and as he began to doubt his own reality, wondering just how much of this was real, when the cleaning droids ran up to him.One of them removed the cuffs.

“There, there, don’t move too much!Arthree is fetching a gurney for you right now,” one of them said.Bane could only distinguish the two because the first who spoke had one burnt out photoreceptor.“I’m J-248, and this is G-258.So you’re the bounty hunter we’ve been hearing about?”

“You’ve…been hearing about me?”Bane frowned, rubbing the back of his neck.

Jaytoo and Jeetoo nodded.

“Vader has mentioned you on and off and how he wanted to bring you here.”Jeetoo motioned for Bane to lie down on the gurney that the astromech named Arthree brought over.Bane needed help from the surgical droid to get on.When he did he winced in pain and felt dizzy.It had taken finally getting off that ship to realize how much bad shape he was in.Maybe he would be lucky for once and die before Vader could do anything to him.

“What does he want with me?” Bane dared ask, fearing the worst, and then some.

“He needs a new servant, first of all.The last one was puny and unfit for his job…Lord Vader’s words, not mine,” Jaytoo chirped.The astromech and surgical droid began pushing the gurney through the doorway and down another dimly lit hall.Bane looked up at the ceiling but saw Jaytoo and Jeetoo from the corner of his eyes.The repair droids walked on either side of him, pulling out supplies to check his vitals.

“Servant?!”Bane tried sitting up but the surgical droid pushed him down rather roughly.Opening up one of the wounds on his back.“Ow!”

“Fourkay!Be gentle.He’s not a droid like us.He’s a sentient, and in critical condition!” Jeetoo snapped.

4K, the surgical droid, backed off after that and kept pushing the gurney to a sharp left into an elevator.As soon as the doors closed Bane tried sitting up again but realized he had overestimated himself and he soon gave up.Having four droids staring at him in such close proximity felt incredibly awkward.

“What do you mean by _servant_?” he challenged.

“It’s exactly what I mean.His last servant wasn’t good enough, so he needed a replacement.Oh but don’t worry, you’ll also be his personal bounty hunter.And that means you get special privileges as an Imperial employee, and Vader’s well earned favor that will get you far both vocationally and socially.That is, if you don’t die on the missions Vader sends you on.Isn’t that wonderful?”Jaytoo cocked his head.

Bane looked at them all, clutching the edges of the gurney.He had been expecting to die in a matter of minutes and instead he was in the elevator of Lord Vader’s castle?

“Not really.Sounds miserable,” he finally answered.

Arthree beeped sadly and looked away.The elevator doors opened and they took Bane to the medbay.Along the sides of the large room were containers empty but for conservation chemical fluids.Dimly illuminated, the room also resembled the rest of what Bane had seen of Vader’s castle so far…dark, full of shadows, no color or light inside.In the center of the room was a bacta tank with pulleys and levers, leaving its purpose to the imagination as no one explained it to the Duros.

Once on a bed he was hooked up to the machines and started to be fed nutrients and water through an IV.Jaytoo and Jeetoo wouldn’t shut up and fussed over him effortlessly.Arthree and Fourkay moved around trying to find a way to help.It was too fast and made him dizzy and more tired.Bane couldn’t even remember the last time he had received intensive medical care.Probably when a stormtrooper shot him in the back three years ago on the Naboo system.Good times.

Had he the strength he would fight back.Demand that they either let him die or help him escape this place.But he had given up on fighting a long time ago.

“Wait, why did he go to the trouble of finding me?”Bane sat up and Arthree whistled in alarm.“There’s a lot you’re not telling me.I need to know!”

“Incorrect.You need to rest,” Fourkay said flatly.Before Bane could get out of the way, the surgical droid grabbed his arm and injected what must have been a sedative.

“Some droid…” he muttered.In seconds Bane collapsed and fell fast asleep.

* * *

His sleep was dreamless for the first time in years.  Nothing but a strange serenity in the darkness, the echo of Vader’s mechanical breathing always in the background, close yet far away.  The aches and pains that had become so commonplace began to fade away, like dying stars, until his body no longer begged to die.  All that was left was a weary mind.

When Cad Bane woke up, he was still in the exact same place.Better than waking up back in the prison, he figured.Felt like he had slept for days.He looked down at his arms and saw that his skin was returning to a much healthier color than before.

Then he turned to his left and almost yelled with alarm.

Vader was standing inches from his bed, staring at him.

“Fuck!What do you want?” Bane demanded.

“Isn’t it obvious?I want you.”Vader crossed his arms and slowly worked his way to the foot of the bed.“You’ve been here for nearly a week and your health has already improved greatly.This means that very soon you will start working for me.”

“Why go to all the trouble of finding me for this job?”

“If you would rather rot the rest of your life away back on Stygeon Prime, then say so because I don’t want to waste idle conversation with you any longer,” Vader snapped.

Bane tried to relax and tore his gaze away from the monster.

“I just don’t understand why you’re doing this.Didn’t figure the Empire hired non-Humans anymore.”He couldn’t hold back the bitterness in his tone.

“You’re not here to understand anything.You’re here to do what I tell you to do.If what I remember of you is still true, you will be too intelligent not to refuse.”He paused to let his words take effect.

Bane stole the silence by playing with the IV in his arm.He grinned up at Vader and licked his lips.

“Now you’re beating around the rutolu bush.”

A rush of Vader’s hand outstretched towards him and Bane couldn’t move.The Force had pinned him down to the bed.His heart began to pound.

“You’re asking for the truth?I save you from a gruesome, pathetic fate and you dare ask me _why_?”

He couldn’t speak.He couldn’t move…couldn’t _breathe_.

“It’s simple, poor little Duros.”Vader slightly—oh so slightly—pressed Bane’s weight into the bed.Just enough for it to start to hurt but not so it negated Bane’s physical recovery.“You’re here because I want you.You will serve me and obey my orders.No questions asked.Understand?”

In a new sense, he now understood that he had left one prison only to enter another.Perhaps Vader would not mistreat him the way the Imperial guards had, but the leash had been tightened all the more.Whatever was expected from him as a servant and a bounty hunter, Bane did not know.But he knew that if he disobeyed death would not be fast or painless.It would not be the escape he so dearly wanted.There was no way out of this.

“Y-y-yes…”

The pressure suddenly released and Vader let go.Bane gasped and shook, chest heaving.

“Good boy.”Once again, the monster vanished.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some visual references for the droids introduced in this chapter.
> 
> R3: http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CfalZ9N5CCg/VchPqpysCZI/AAAAAAAAEtw/8ZwhYJ7tzYk/s1600/2175droidfactory-r2-q5-black-orange-silver.jpg
> 
> J2 and G2: http://vignette3.wikia.nocookie.net/starwars/images/e/ec/G2-goose_negtd.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20071012004602
> 
> 4K: http://vignette4.wikia.nocookie.net/starwars/images/5/50/ROTS2-1bdroid.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20061207163818


	4. Chapter 4

_Good boy…?Good boy?!_

“Who the hell does he think he is?”Bane growled at the little astromech who was giving him his medicine for the day.“Does he think I’m just going to agree to becoming his pet?”

_“/_ I don’t think it’s so bad.You get free food here.And I hear food is delicious!/” Arthree beeped cheerfully.Bane was beginning to get a sense of how much the droids contrasted the atmosphere of the castle.Or at least what little he had seen of it.

“I had free food in prison too.”The Duros sulked.

“/It took Lord Vader a long time to find where you were.But he had us keep looking through all the records until we found you./”Arthree offered him some stale soup and Bane took it reluctantly.It was the best he had tasted in a long time.

“Sounds like a lot of trouble to go to just for a new servant.”Bane glanced at Arthree.“Doesn’t make any sense.There’s something he’s not telling me…or one of you droids isn’t.”

Arthree whistled innocently and left to go take care of his other duties.The hospital room stayed empty for a couple hours, which gave plenty of time for Bane to mull over his last conversation with Vader.

What could Vader possibly want with him when the best of his career had ended long ago?Much less with the fact that he had been sentenced to an Imperial prison and was close to death.

What did Vader see in him?And should it make Bane relieved or worried?

Either way, he had to find out.

Bane forced himself to rest some more to regain his strength.Half a day later he awoke to find Jaytoo and Jeetoo removing the IV’s from his arms.Beside him sat a small pile of clean clothing, simple garments but a vast improvement from prison fatigues.

“It’s time.Lord Vader wants to see you immediately.Clean up and get dressed.”Fourkay pulled back the sheets and swiped away Bane’s pillow.

“All right, all right.I’m moving.”When Bane stood up his legs gave out at first and he collapsed.He grabbed the bed and pulled himself up, more embarrassed than anything.A few years ago he would have been fully recovered by now.With Fourkay’s help he managed to take small steps to the fresher.He had wonder how long Vader had had this medical facility in place, and why.

When he finally worked up the courage to undress and look in the mirror, he wasn’t surprised, but disappointed nevertheless.He was just skin and bones, scar tissue, broken bones that never healed properly.Disgraceful.Compared to who he used to be, he was nothing now.Just a lost, old, forgotten bounty hunter with not much of a future.

His best days were behind him.

_Oh, well.Had to happen sooner or later._

He didn’t feel much better after cleaning up either.The droids lined up at the door when he opened it, still getting dressed.

“Lord Vader does _not_ like to be kept waiting, you know!” Jaytoo cried.“If you anger him too much you will be deactivated.”

“Killed.For sentients, the word you’re looking for is killed,” Bane muttered, wishing for a cigarette.“And I don’t think Vader is nice enough for that.”He had trouble keeping up with the droids as they headed out of the room, legs not cooperating as they should be.

“We’re going to be late.Help him get in that power chair.”Fourkay was already pushing Bane to sit in it, not waiting for the other droids.Arthree had begun to make nervous sounds, giving Bane the impression that the droids had gotten a taste of Vader’s impatience and subsequent wrath in the past.Maybe that was why Jaytoo only had one working eye?

“I’m not _that_ old.”Bane looked at the droids bitterly but knew better than to fight back as they helped him in the power chair.He moved it along out of the medbay, followed by all four of them to the elevator.“So how long have you been working for Vader?”

“About a decade, give or take,” Fourkay replied.“Our memories of everything before we were brought here were wiped down.I only know this because obviously Lord Vader told us and then we were sent to work.”

“So what do you do, polish his helmet?” Bane glanced up at him.

“If blood from his victims has compromised his vision, then yes.I also mop up the messes he’s left behind after he has had someone done away with.”

“Ever seen what he looks like without the helmet?”

“On rare occasions, yes.”Fourkay still wasn’t catching on.

“What’s…what does he look like?”

“Perhaps you can ask him that yourself.”The elevator doors opened.Bane pushed the switch and the power chair moved forward and took a left down a long hallway.The slight hum of the power chair echoed off the looming black walls, a faint red glow trickling through the small portals revealing the lava and the wasteland surrounding them.Mustafar had always meant death.The place where people are sent to by the Empire and no one sees them again.Where any trespassers had their ships, with them trapped inside, slowly lowered into a lake of lava as punishment.Where Bane had been sent all those years ago to do one of his least favorite jobs.Now he was back and did not even know why.

_Who is this monster?_ Bane wondered. _Who is hiding behind the mask?_ The doors slowly slid open and the droids led him through.He took a sharp breath through his aching lungs, for there, standing at the other end of a long black wooden table, was Vader.Nothing lay on the table save for a single luxury porcelain plate and set of silverware.A large meal had been set out on it beside a tall glass of water flavored with a lemon slice.There was a proteinloaf with gravy, crab rotoven, rishi corn, several large slices of bread, and a bowl of freshly diced fruit.

Bane’s mouth watered.He hadn’t realized how much he missed real food.

“You will join me for dinner, bounty hunter, whether you want to or not,” Vader said.His voice was so loud it startled Bane a little.“I would tell you to have a seat but it seems you already have one.”

_Seems his sense of humor is as colorful as this castle._

“Myself and the kitchen droid made it all for you,” Jeetoo chirped.

Bane frowned and moved his power chair up to the end of the table.

“You’re not eating?” he asked, noticing Vader didn’t have a plate.

“I receive the nutrients I require through a vitapaste I ingest through straws on a very strict schedule throughout the day.Therefore I will not be dining with you at this moment.Not that it matters to you.”Vader pulled his cape out and pulled up the chair at the other end.“Enjoy your meal.Please…be our guest.”

“I’ll do my best.”Already embarrassed enough because he had to use a power chair, Bane didn’t bother with manners.He wolfed down forkfuls of the crab before two slices of the bread disappeared too, only pausing to drink.

“Does it taste good?” Vader asked, almost bitterly.Maybe he couldn’t even taste food anymore.

“Sure beats what they gave us in prison,” Bane said between large bites.

“Be careful on your stomach.You are not used to this sort of diet and it will make you sick if you eat too quickly.”

Bane ignored his advice and kept eating.Every now and then he glanced up at Vader to see what he was doing, but all he seemed to do was sit motionless and stare at Bane.It made him uncomfortable, but not enough to steal his appetite.

“So why do you wear the mask all the time?” Bane asked as casually as he could.

His dinnerware rattled as Vader slammed a tight fist on the table.Was that supposed to scare him?He supposed that Vader couldn’t exactly maim him, since he had gone to so much trouble to bring Bane here.It wouldn’t do to kill him.So he was relatively safe.

“You’re not supposed to ask questions.”

“Seems to me like you’re hiding something.”Bane finished off the bowl of fruit in seconds.When he swallowed, he looked right up at Vader across the long table.The droids in the corner tensed, as if anticipating wrath.“Would it be so terrible if someone saw your real face?”

“That’s where you are wrong.I have no face.The mask is all you will see of me.”

“Whatever…”

Bane was about to stab the last piece of proteinloaf, except the fork was forced out of his hand.Vader lifted it with the Force and pointed it directly at Bane’s eyes.

“You only need one of those.Watch your tongue.”

He should have known better, but it seemed that as of late Bane had become an expert at shitty decisions.Gripping the edge of the table, he pushed as hard as he could.His legs shook and almost gave out again, but with some effort, Bane stood up and held on with all the strength left in him.

Their eyes locked on each other and the room froze.No one made a sound.Not even the droids.

Bane broke the silence.

“Do it.”

For the first time, the sound of his own voice shocked him.He was much weaker than he thought.And this was after days of recovery.How much of his life had the Empire really stolen?

“You _want_ me to half blind you?”

“Yeah.”Bane locked his elbows, trying to stay balanced.“I don’t care.Go ahead.”

“Don’t test me,” Vader snarled.

“I’m not fucking with you.I’m serious.”Bane didn’t look away from him.

The fork dropped to the plate, landing with a sharp _clank_.Bane clung to the edge of the table even tighter as Vader rose from his chair.Cape flowing behind him, Arthree making worried beeping sounds, Vader treaded along the length of the table.He did not stop until he was an inch from Bane.

“You want to see my face, is that it?I’m sure you are one of those kind of people who knows that once you see something, you can never unsee it.And if you could you’d unsee a lot of terrible things in the galaxy, wouldn’t you?”

“All the more reason I’m better off blind…my Lord.”Bane smiled sweetly.

Who knew a dance with the devil would be so thrilling.

Vader’s shout made all the droids jump with alarm.

“ _You want to see my face_?!”His fist met Bane’s face, then his stomach.The Duros doubled over and collapsed on the floor.When he looked up, Vader was already beginning to take off the front of the helmet.“It’s been a very long time since we’ve seen each other face to face like this.”

“So I know you from somewhere before?”Bane coughed violently.“But where?”

“Oh, take a guess.This could be fun.You only have a few seconds to look at my face before I must put the mask back on, so you’d better make them count.”

Then the mask was removed.

Bane stared.Vader’s skin was white.Frightfully white.A ghastly scar ran down the side of his head.His facial features had been badly decayed, but Bane still recognized that he was Human.Or at least, _had_ been Human once upon a time.

“You’re…” _Hideous.Worse than the rumors said,_ Bane finished mentally.

“Look at me, Bane!Look in my eyes!”Vader hissed.His lips didn’t move but the bottom half of the helmet translated the words for him, only now his voice sounded slightly raspy.

“Your eyes?Sorry, I don’t think we’ve met.I’d recognize that ugly mug.”

A low growl indicated Bane had really gone too far with that one.

Vader’s eyes were yellow.Hidden behind charred flesh.What was he supposed to be seeing?

“Look at my eyes.Don’t you recognize me?”Vader grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him close until Bane could smell the monster’s rotting flesh.“Can’t you see the man I used to be?Or are you really that blind already? _Can’t you see me_?”

Then he saw it.

A long vertical scar over the right eye…distinct, older than the other marks.

_I know that scar._

Bane felt the world give out from under him.When he spoke, it was scarcely above a whisper.His bones turned to ice from the shock.

“Skywalker…”


	5. Chapter 5

He took Vader’s silence as an answer.

“You’ve, um…you’ve changed.”

He didn’t know why he said.Not only a brutally obvious statement, but with a tone that suggested he did not care.In another life, Bane had wondered, he could have fallen very much in love with Anakin Skywalker.But it was just like how in another life he may have preferred to turn left instead of right at a particular intersection on Coruscant’s skylanes.It had just been one of those things that would not change.His heart may have been fully equipped to love Anakin, but his life would not have handled the affair.

So, restraining what could have been into what should not be, Bane did not let himself truly fall in love with the Jedi.And he did pretty good.Only spilled the L-word when they were both hammered.Staring up at the constellations, sharing a cigarette, laughing at the bloody lips and broken fingers they gave each other mere weeks ago.

But that was over ten years ago.Anakin stopped visiting in the last few weeks of the Clone Wars.When the Jedi Purge took place, Bane could only assume his fuck buddy, enemy, and potential lover had been taken with them.

Now Bane wished he had been right all along.

“You’ve changed too,” Vader snickered.

“A little here and there but not a full on renovation.What did you do, stick your hand in a—”

Vader’s hand clamped around Bane’s throat before he could finish.He was lifted up into the air.Bane grabbed at Vader’s arm in vain, choking for air in a sudden panic.

“I’m getting tired of your smart remarks, Bane.”With his other hand Vader slapped the mask back on and took a deep breath.“It’s almost as if you want to see what I’m capable of.”

“Could be fun,” Bane wheezed.

“You want to know what happened to Anakin Skywalker, do you?As if you honestly ever cared about him at all.He was just a plaything for you, wasn’t he?You had fun and did what you liked with him when you had the chance.But where were you when Skywalker needed you?Where were you when the rest of the galaxy abandoned him!”

_What the hell is he talking about?_ Sure they had had their fights.And not just because they were on opposite sides of a galactic conflict in which they were forced to be enemies.But Bane never recalled abandoning him.If anything, Anakin hadn’t been there when Bane needed him the most. _Asshole!_

Bane would have kicked but his legs still wouldn’t cooperate.He just hung there helpless as Vader stepped closer to the floor to ceiling window, fire burning in his hollow eyes.When they reached the window, Vader slammed Bane’s body against it, shattering the glass.Bane cried out in pain but didn’t dare look down.Below him, thousands of feet below, the hot lava lake of Mustafar burned, a threatening grave.

He could still feel the heat from this far away.His eyes widened.He kicked a little more, struggling to breathe.

“Sk-skywalker…Don’t…”

“You abandoned him just like everyone else did!So you shouldn’t be surprised that this is all that’s left now.Nothing of the person you used to know.Just this disgusting flesh behind the mask and a black coffin!It’s all Darth Vader is!”

He shook Bane like a rag doll as he hovered just outside the broken window.What sent chills up Bane’s spine was the seemingly innocent tilt of Vader’s head to one side, their eyes locked on each other, Bane growing pale from lack of oxygen.“What’s the matter?You don’t like heights?”

Bane couldn’t answer.He really didn’t want to die this way.

“You’re pathetic,” Vader spat.“If you ever wanted Anakin Skywalker again, that’s just too bad for you.He’s been gone for over ten years now.And by the looks of it, Cad Bane has been gone some time as well.”Like tossing a piece of trash, Vader threw Bane over his shoulder.Bane’s body was slammed into the table.He couldn’t break his fall and landed badly on his arm.

Before Bane could get up, Vader’s voice rang out.

“Droids!Take him to the solitary confinement tower.Our new guest has some thinking to do.”

“Wait a minute…”Bane rolled over on his back to look up at him, only to discover his lip was bleeding badly.“You’re not going to tell me what happened to you?”

A long pause, Vader hovering over him like the grim reaper.Was he debating as to tell Bane or not?Or was he simply fantasizing about what to do with his new servant?

“Does it even matter?” Vader demanded, fists clenched at his sides as he towered over the Duros.

The droids scurried over and helped Bane back into his power chair.

“It does matter!” Bane snapped at him, but it was too late for more conversation.The droids were already moving his power chair away.

“Lord Vader is in a very good mood today,” Jaytoo remarked.

“ _That’s_ his good mood?” Bane muttered.

“One of his best, actually.Now on his bad days, you’ll know better than to be smart with him.”Jaytoo and Arthree helped push his power chair to the elevator.“I’m so sorry to have to lock you in the solitary confinement tower, but it’s my Lord’s orders.I have to obey him.”

“I understand.”That was the least of Bane’s worries now.He looked at the droid.“But I knew him.Before he was Vader.Before he was like…this.”

“Like how?”

“A monster,” Bane said simply.That’s all there was to it.Vader was a machine with the temper of a cornered wild animal.He hadn’t seen any of the Anakin he used to know in those horrid eyes.

Jeetoo stepped a little closer to the power chair, looking up at the Duros.

“What was he like?Before Vader?”

Bane sighed and held his head.He hadn’t let himself trigger those memories in so long.After ten years on the run, barely making a living as a hunter, he didn’t want to remember happier times or he would just become more miserable.And those times with Anakin, when they could stay up all night long and confess their troubles like teenagers…those had been the happiest of all.

But the memories were still there.He remembered when they first met.Two months after that encounter, Bane stole a Holocron right out from under the Jedi’s noses.When the Jedi eventually arrested him for it, Anakin pretended to interrogate him.But in truth he gave Bane the best blowjob of the Duros’ life so he would be persuaded to talk.After that it was a wild ride with the Jedi.Either hating each other or never getting enough of each other…or both.

And now what was left?Two broken, scarred, old men locked in their own coffins.Bane’s coffin had become this castle.And as for Vader, that horrible suit he wore for Force knows what purposes.They were just a few fragments of who they once were, if that.

Memories were all that remained of the past.

“He felt too much,” Bane finally answered.

* * *

The door to the solitary confinement room was sealed behind him.  The droids scurried away from it, muttering about Vader.  What he might plan to do now.  What might happen to Vader’s new servant.  All the things Bane did not understand.

“We’ll be back to bring you meals!” Jeetoo cried through the small hole in the wall.“And that’s about it.Other than that you’ll pretty much be alone.Sorry!”

“It’s fine,” he muttered.

Maybe Bane would be better off starving himself to death.

He turned his power chair around and looked about what there was of the room.Lights on with no dimness which he knew would be frustrating after a while when he wanted some sleep.But he had dealt with it before.The walls and the lone bed, nothing but a single small sheet, were off white.The room didn’t have any windows either.No difference in the cells he had been sent to in prison when he misbehaved.He could handle this.

It was the quiet that got to him every time.The worst sound in the galaxy was that of his own thoughts.This was a lesson learned the hard way every time.

Bane moved over to the bed and lay down, relieved to have a change in posture.After a while he sat up and tried rubbing his legs, hoping it would help them heal a little faster.He still ached from the blow Vader gave him.Bottom lip was sore and he had a bad bruise on his arm.At least he didn’t have much to worry about for the time being.Save for the toll solitary confinement might take on his mental stability.

As if that mattered anymore.

What had happened to Anakin Skywalker?How did he become this monster?

Sooner or later Bane drifted off to a restless sleep, thinking of the Jedi he had known once.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some flashback goodness in this chapter. And some implied smut (don't worry, the actual smut will get here soon enough!)

Anakin turned over and looked at the Duros beside him who had just woken up.  Coruscant was still dark out, their faces illuminated by the neon sign outside the window, sliced by the window blinds.  Anakin rubbed the crust from his eyes.

“Good morning,” he said.

Bane grunted in reply.He sat up, exposing the deep fingernail scratches down his back from last night.The long groan he made indicated he had a bad hangover.

“What happened last night…?” he drawled as he rubbed the back of his neck.

“Last I remember is you passed out on top of me,” Anakin muttered, rubbing his forehead.“And I must have been out not long after that.”

Bane swung his legs over the bed, then when he tried to stand up he realized that was a mistake and lay back down again.

“I’ve decided I’m not going to do anything today,” he said, staring up at the ceiling.

“Me neither.”Anakin lay beside him and sighed.“I’m supposed to be meditating right now.”

“Isn’t that just a fancy term for what we did last night?”Bane smirked.

“Oh shut up.”Anakin slid his mechno hand down to Bane’s crotch.In response, the Duros’ legs shot up and he gave a small yelp.“Oops, was that cold?I’m so sorry.”

Bane grabbed his mechno hand and shoved it over, pinning Anakin down by his wrist.In an instant Bane pinned him by his other wrist as well.Anakin squirmed playfully and looked up at him with a growing smirk.

“Now I see you’re awake.”

“You’re really a pain in the ass, you know that?”Bane leaned in for a kiss but moved to Anakin’s neck instead, nuzzling him for a moment.

“That’s why you’re supposed to use lube…ow!”Anakin felt Bane nip at his shoulder and squeeze his wrists even tighter.“Oh come on, how could I pass that one up?”He leaned up for a kiss and Bane did not disappoint.Their lips collided awkwardly and Anakin laughed a little as he felt Bane moan from the back of his throat.Anakin leaned up until their stomachs rubbed up against each other and he sensed the resulting shiver through Bane’s body.When he pulled away Bane looked at him with a smile in his eyes.“Will my bounty hunter go make caf, please?” Anakin mewed.

“Sure, sure.”Bane got up and grabbed a pair of pants to pull on.

Anakin watched him leave the room and sighed, then rolled over on his stomach, messing with his hair.He couldn’t believe he had done it yet again…run off from his Jedi duties to go screw around with a criminal.And not just any criminal.Bane was wanted by the Republic with over a two million reward, dead or alive but preferably alive so he could face justice.Anakin had been there when Bane held the Senate building hostage.

Yet here he was, in Bane’s bed, watching Bane make caf, his bite marks in all the right and wrong places on that blue skin.

Maybe it was his addiction.His way of coping with everything thrown against him by the galaxy, all the Jedi who told him to be the Chosen One when he had no idea how, all the pressure of his head and his heart at war.Some people were addicted to cigs or death sticks or alcohol.Anakin was addicted to the color blue.

He rolled over on his back and stared up at the cracks in the ceiling.Bane soon returned with two cups of caf.One was black and the other loaded with sugar and cream.Anakin smiled and sat up.

“Just the way I like it.I’ll never understand how you can take it black.”

“We’ve had this conversation a hundred times.”Bane sat beside him, their bare legs touching.

“Then let’s have it one last time.”Anakin smirked.“Tell me what makes black so good.”

One last time.This would be the last time he came back to Bane for bruises and sex and long talks into the night.Then he would start being a good Jedi again.This was the last time, for sure.

Bane smiled back at him.The look gave away he had another trick up his sleeve.

“I’ll explain it if you suck me off again.”

“Only because I’m in a generous mood.”Anakin huffed.“I’m not swallowing, though.Doesn’t mix well with caf.”

“I love how you’re aware of that.”Bane spread his legs and watched him, sipping his caf as he reached for his pack of cigs…

* * *

Vader wished he didn’t remember when he had a body that was actually desirable.  When nobody wanted him out of obligation.  When he could spend his days sleeping around and pretending the galaxy wasn’t falling apart and he couldn’t do anything to stop it, because he was the Chosen One, after all, so how could it be so bad?  He rode that for years, lying to himself over and over that he could save everyone.  Maybe he even convinced himself that someday he and Bane could be open about their relationship.

Look at them now.

The skies of Mustafar had blackened with nightfall.Vader opened his eyes and hit the switch, slowly lowering his helmet back on.He had been in the meditation chamber long enough, mulling on the old memories.Memories that only caused him agony now, but it was just a taste of what he deserved.What was left of his skin itched so horribly it felt like fire, and his eyes ached with strain.His organs groaned in protest from the constant strain of survival, the cage of a machine forcing his physical being to stay alive.He hated it.Hated knowing that he could not stop breathing if he wanted to.

Jaytoo approached the chamber as soon as Vader opened it and stepped through.The droid looked nervous, as always.He carried a tray with injections containing Vader’s vital nutrients for the day.

“On time as always, Jaytoo,” Vader said coldly as the droid approached.

“Of course, my Lord.”Jaytoo placed in the injections one at a time with great care.The sensation of new chemicals working their way through his system would have felt refreshing were it not just a reminder that he wouldn’t die.It hurt to know he would live longer.

Vader wanted to laugh.Listen to him.How pathetic was that?Most anyone in the galaxy would give anything just to be him for a day, the most feared creature the Galactic Empire had had to offer.And Vader would give anything to not be Vader.

“My Lord, it’s been nearly sixteen days since Bane was placed in solitary confinement,” Jaytoo said with great hesitancy.

“I’m aware of that.What is your point?”

“Shall we release him?”

“No.I know for a fact that Bane has endured far longer terms in solitary and emerged mentally unscathed.This sort of criminal is a difficult one to break, but it’s not impossible.He must stay there for at least another month.”

“But my Lord, if you intend to break him, how is he supposed to do his duties for you?

“That’s none of your concern, Jaytoo!” Vader snapped.“Now go see that he’s received his food and medication for the day.I need to keep him physically healthy.”

“Yes, my Lord!”The droid scurried away.

Once he was out of sight, Vader held his head.All he had wanted was the color blue.A color to lose himself in, to find happiness in, to forget about his troubles.How had it come down to this?

* * *

"Go away!  Get out!”  Anakin threw whatever he could grab.  An empty glass, dirty boxers, broken pieces from his latest model project.  Anything at all.  He just wanted to make Bane angry.

The Duros, glaring daggers, avoided what hits he could as he drew closer to the Jedi one step at a time.His eyes burned so furiously they seemed to glow.When he was arm’s length away he smacked Anakin on the face, more to humiliate him than hurt him.It did both.Anakin turned his head to the side, tears rushing to his eyes.

“You’re such an asshole,” Anakin hissed under his breath.

“Don’t you dare blame it all on me.You knew what you were getting into,” Bane said coldly, rubbing the spot where Anakin’s boot had hit him right on the shoulder.“I was just doing my job.”

“A job you didn’t _have_ to take.”Anakin looked up.“You always have a choice.”

Bane laughed and stepped back, turning away from him.

“See, that’s your problem.You think my job is so simple, don’t you?That I can turn down as many offers as I want because, oh, there has to be someone out there who will offer me something I’m perfectly okay with.”Bane rubbed his brow.“Doesn’t matter.You never bothered to understand it.”

“You murdered an innocent Senator’s family.She had _children_ , Bane!The youngest was barely four!”

Bane faced him, snarling, exposing his fangs.

“As if your Order is innocent of hurting kids.”

“So you get off the hook for murder because we take Force sensitives in when no one else out there will understand them?” Anakin demanded.But he had had this conversation with Bane before.He would never admit there were things about the Jedi Order he felt uncomfortable with too, things he could never justify.

“You Jedi claim to be peacekeepers yet look at you, a war hero, and your precious Order has hurt a lot more people than it helped.If you bothered to look down for a moment where I’ve been, you’d see that.”

That hit Anakin hard.He felt an ache in his chest.

“You know me better than that…” he whispered, hating himself when tears rushed to his eyes.No damn way he was going to let Bane see him cry.

“And you love it, don’t you?You love being in the middle of the action, being a hero, pretending you’re saving everyone when this war has done no—”

Without thinking, Anakin reached out with the Force, channeling all his aggression and hurt with it.He had no idea what was going to happen, only that his heart had been broken when he heard what his lover had done without telling him.Just days ago it had been all over the news following Bane’s arrest.Then of course the news that he escaped custody yet again.And Bane had had the nerve to sneak back to Anakin’s chambers in the Temple like nothing had happened.He couldn’t take another heartbreak.

Anakin watched as Bane’s body, not predicting the attack, was thrown like a rag doll against the wall, along with the bedside table that slammed into his legs.The impact of the blow knocked Bane unconscious instantly.In horror, not quite realizing what he was seeing, Anakin saw him crumple to the floor, leaving slight traces of blood on the wall.

“Oh, gods…Cad!”He ran to Bane and knelt by him, picking him up in his arms.In seconds Anakin had already forgotten what they were fighting about.All that mattered was he could have killed the person he loved and it was all his fault.“I’m so sorry.Please be okay!Please!”

It took several minutes, but Bane finally came to.Anakin cupped his face, searching for any signs of serious injury, tears clouding his vision.Any more force and he might have killed Bane, or paralyzed him.How could he have done this?

“Cad?I’m so sorry…”

“Don’t touch me.”Bane shoved him away and pulled himself up.He felt the bump on the back of his head, leaning against the wall for support.Aside from a limp he seemed okay.

“I’m sorry!I didn’t mean it.”

“Shut up!I’m leaving.”

Anakin got up to follow him, to try to make him stay.Anything so Bane wouldn’t abandon him like Padmé had when she sent over the divorce papers, like Ahsoka did when she walked away from the Order.But when Bane opened the window to leave the way he came, all Anakin could do was kneel on the floor and cry.

In the end, everyone he loved had gotten up and walked away all because of him.Foolish to think he deserved one minute of being loved like that.Now it was gone.Sobs in the back of his throat, he watched Bane limp away to his speeder, not knowing Bane was trying not to cry too.

Seemed like yesterday everything had been perfect.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Vader is such a nasty piece of shit and I adore him

Sidious summoned him to the communications room.

_“Lord Vader, have you found a personal mercenary of your own yet?”_

Vader was finally pleased to give an answer.He lowered his head and looked down at the floor.

“Yes, my Master.He is currently undergoing necessary training for the job, but he is nearly ready.”  
_“That is good to hear, because I have an assignment for you.There is a recent insurgence on the Naboo system.A traitor hiding out in the capital city.I want you to go and find the traitor and wipe them out, along with all their followers.This will be a fine opportunity to test your mercenary as well.”_

Vader seethed.Naboo, of course.Of _course_ Sidious would send him to the place that only reminded him of his lost love, where so many old memories would kill him more inside.But he had no choice.Saying No to Master was never an option.So Vader simply accepted the fact that his next mission would be grueling and nothing short of agony, especially with having Bane there beside him.He bowed again and pulled back his cape.

“It will be done, Master.”

Without another word, Sidious was gone.Vader would have sighed with relief had he control of his own breathing, but the machines did that for him, forcing him to inhale and exhale constantly.He rose and turned to face the droid waiting for him at the entrance to the room.

“Fourkay.How long has Cad Bane been in solitary confinement?”

“Five weeks, sir.Only receiving the minimum required water and nutrients to sustain him.”

Vader left for the main hall, signaling for Fourkay to follow him.During the past weeks he had thought frequently about Bane’s suffering.Meditated on it, even, using what little of a connection they had formed through the Force years ago.It allowed Vader to reach toward him, search through the stories behind each scar and each flinch.And in return, Bane would consequently be affected by the strong presence of the Dark Side surrounding Vader.It was a win-lose situation.Vader got to know his newest plaything in the only way he wanted to, and Bane got to get a taste of true sickness and pollution.In his meditation chambers, Vader had focused only on Bane.Only on all the negativity inside him.

As he had learned quickly, the negativity inside Bane outweighed the positivity by far.

Not only what it was like for Bane being locked in complete silence and isolation for a long time, which by itself took its toll before long.He could feel Bane’s mental stability wearing down, leading him to cry out for relief that would never arrive.But Vader reached back long before that, before the present.He could only imagine how finding bounty hunting work had changed since the rise of the Galactic Empire, and how it affected criminals like Bane.Of course, now he didn’t have to imagine it at all.As for the years Bane spent in Imperial prison, those were even more layers of pain to unravel.The abuse at the hands of the guards, the violence between prisoners, the psychological breakdown that almost led Bane to forget who he was.

Compared to how he remembered Bane from before, this was nothing.This person in his clutches now was a shadow of the old Bane.Someone who was far from his days of glory, broken down and beaten until there was hardly any will left to go on.

All of it gave Vader a twisted sense of pleasure.He _liked_ knowing that his ex lover had been hurting all those years they spent apart.He liked knowing he wasn’t the only one who had had it hard.The more he could sense Bane’s years of constant suffering of multiple kinds, the more Vader’s strength in the Dark Side swelled.And the more he came to know the power within him again.

He turned around and faced Fourkay.

“It’s been long enough.Bring him to me.”

Vader did not have to wait long for the droids to bring Bane.Physically, Bane had recovered well and did not even need the power chair to walk.He stood upright as he followed the droid.However his mind was another story.

“Leave him here.I don’t need you to guard the door,” Vader demanded.

Fourkay took off, knowing better than to hesitate for a moment in obeying the Master.Once the doors shut, Vader approached the Duros, who looked around the room like it was his first time seeing it.

“Enjoy your quiet time?”

Bane looked up at him, a blank stare, like he was in a trance.

“You were dead…”

“What’s that?Speak up!” Vader barked.

“They said you were dead.The Jedi Temple.Dead…”

“You are correct.Anakin Skywalker is dead.You say his name again and I will—”

“No!Don’t take me back there.I’ve had enough of it!” Bane pleaded, slowly sinking to his knees.“Anything but that again.”

He pulled back his cape.Seeing his old lover turned enemy turned lover turned enemy again in this state was appealing.Knowing that Bane had reached the point where he begged for mercy.It reminded Vader of everything he had earned the right to do to the people who deserted him, and Bane was no exception.When Anakin had needed help the most, Bane got up and walked away without looking back.Now to have the same man on his knees filled Vader with new anger, new power.

“You’re in luck.I need you to come with me to Naboo.”

Bane frowned in confusion.Had he really forgotten?

“The droids will inform you of the details.Now follow me.Our ship is already prepared for takeoff.”Vader turned his back to him.He ached to know the specifics of what Bane had been through.He wanted to know that Bane had not had a good life since leaving Anakin, because how dare anyone feel good without him.“You do remember when you met Anakin on Naboo both times, don’t you?”

Bane rubbed his eyes, still muttering something about ‘dead’ and ‘Temple.’He looked around, then pulled his jacket closer to him.Fourkay and Jaytoo had been supplying him with new clean clothes, and although they were for more practicality than looks, they still resembled the old preferences Vader knew.For example, the tough leather jacket that helped keep coldblooded sentients like Duros warm during space travel, and special tunics that did not irritate the skin in dry climates.

“But they said you were dead.You fought in the Jedi Temple.Shot by clones.Traitor.”

“So that’s what everyone believes happened to me?”

“I missed you…”

That ticked Vader off.A lot.He spun around and grabbed the front of Bane’s jacket and gave him a good shake, not caring if it did any damage.He scowled behind the mask.

“You _missed_ me.Then why weren’t you there when I needed you!” he shouted.

Bane stared up at him.His wide eyes and trembling body gave it away.Vader terrified him.

Good.

“Where were you when everyone else abandoned me and I was alone?Where were you when I lost everything?”

For good measure, Vader shook him again.Bane struggled to find the words.Vader began to squeeze his shoulders until they bruised.

“I was…”

“ _Where were you?_ ” Vader shouted.

Finally, he spat it out.

“I was missing you.”

He was not sure whether to shake him again or laugh.But either way a memory forced itself back in front of him, a moment so blissful and so pure it disgusted him.He remembered Anakin giggling in Bane’s arms, their naked bodies pressed against each other, smiles exchanged between them and the smell of whiskey on their breath, the sweet smell of intimacy filling the room.It had once been something Anakin liked to dream about.It once felt good in the times he missed Bane when they were both away because of the war.Or when he worried Bane had been killed or sent to prison.Then after Bane left it began to ache, then cause him agony, until he pulled it out almost completely.

As if disgusted, Vader let go of him and let the Duros drop to the floor.

“That is the most pathetic thing you have ever said.”

“I remember,” Bane whispered.

“What?”

“I remember Naboo.You arrested me there both times.”He rubbed his hurting shoulders.“You and your Padawan.I was taken away.Jedi mind trick.”

“Ah, yes.You didn’t cave in so easily to that one, strong mind you are.Or was.”Vader still had not forgiven himself for what he did that day.He would never let go of it.

Bane slowly got up, still shaking and giving Vader looks as if he anticipated being grabbed and thrown around again.

“The second time your Master turned on me,” he mumbled.

“Kenobi did the same to me not long after that.He was going to kill me and tried to deceive me, turn the rest against me.In fact…he is the reason I’m forced to wear this suit.”As soon as he said it, he sensed Bane looking him up and down, mind filling with questions.And he remembered that Bane had only seen what Vader’s face looked like now.He still had no idea of the damage done to the rest of him, and how the suit kept him alive.With a silent huff, Vader continued to walk down the hall to the ship.They mustn’t be late.Bane, still staring, followed him.

“What did he do to you?Care to tell me?I like the details.”

_So did I, a long time ago._ What Vader would not give to forget every happy moment he shared with his bounty hunter years back.He only wanted to remember the fighting and the yelling.He wanted to remember when he hurt Bane with the Jedi Mind Trick in a way that could never earn forgiveness.And the ways Bane had hurt him by going behind his back and killing other Jedi.Those were the only things Vader wanted to hold onto now.They were the only memories he deserved, after all.

“Perhaps on our way to Naboo, I can show you.”


	8. Chapter 8

Vader’s ship had everything they needed and more.

They both had their own personal quarters, to begin with.Vader’s consisted of a personal meditation chamber he had designed on his own, as well as a bacta tank much like the one in the medbay in his palace.A back storage room containing hundreds of copies of data on the Empire and regions of the galaxy that he might need during missions from the Emperor.Of course it wouldn’t be complete without spare parts for his costume and mechno limbs, in case they were damaged in combat.He had no reason to complain.

Meanwhile, Bane’s quarters only had what he would need while working for Vader. Weapons of all kinds, tools he would need for the job, and enough food to last him months.He only had the necessary items, nothing for comfort or luxury.

No decorations or anything to make the ship’s interior more aesthetically appealing.No extra expenses on so much as a rug or a paint job.To put simply, the ship looked horribly dull inside.Per the Emperor’s orders.Vader was not someone who needed, much less deserved, trivial pleasures such as these.

As soon as they boarded, Vader vanished to pilot the ship on his own.Bane watched him go, still mulling over the last words Vader spoke to him.What did he mean by showing Bane what had happened to him?How far did he plan to push it?

The droids followed behind and nudged him gently.

“Congratulations.You are Lord Vader’s first personal bounty hunter.”Jaytoo and Jeetoo showed Bane to his room as he looked around.“We really missed you while you were away.It’s nice having someone new from the outside here for a change.”

He stared for a bit, still wondering if this was a hallucination and if he would wake up back in the solitary confinement cell.One of the side effects of being locked up like that for a long time—reality tilted several degrees both ways and back.He finally sat on the bed and looked up at the bare ceiling, feeling the ship hum as it slowly lifted off Mustafar.

“Is that a good thing?”

“You tell me.”Jaytoo cocked his head.“I get the feeling that you and Lord Vader have met before.”

Bane managed a smile of bitterness.The memories stung.He remembered when he had walked away from the Jedi Temple for the last time, head still aching from the near concussion Anakin gave him during their fight.He could still hear Anakin sobbing, apologizing over and over, begging him to stay.And then months later he saw the Temple burning and could only imagine what Anakin’s last moments had been like.

In a small way, he had blamed himself for it.If he had not broken up with Anakin, maybe he could have helped him get out of that mess somehow.

But it was too late to think of that now, wasn’t it?

“Sort of.Yes and no.”

“I’m sorry.I don’t understand.”

Jeetoo chirped, agreeing with Jaytoo.

“I knew who he was before he…was Vader.He was different.I was in love.”

“I’ve heard that expression before, but I never understood what it meant.”The droid was about to sit beside him when suddenly an alert attached to his body activated.“I’m sorry, Lord Vader requires my attention.”

While he waited, Bane paced around and tried not to think of Anakin Skywalker, the Jedi he once loved.When he could no longer ignore his empty stomach he found some food and ate it right out of the can, not even bothering to heat it up.It still tasted incredible.

With his last swallow the door opened, exposing the tall figure dressed in black standing there.

“So, you want to know what Kenobi did to me?” Vader demanded.

Bane swallowed.

“I’m not quite sure if I really do.”

Ignoring the statement, Vader proceeded to glance around the small room, then down at Bane’s form.

“You’ve put on a little weight.That’s good, since you were nearly dead when you first arrived.When you’re physically capable I will have the droids engage you in specific workouts and exercises to build up your strength.I cannot have a bounty hunter as weak as you are right now.”

“So you’re not going to put me in a suit like yours?”

“Don’t be stupid.”

Bane frowned.He despised Vader’s tone.

“Now, enough small talk.Will you let me enter your mind?”Vader took another step closer and his gloved hands did not move but Bane could sense them tingling, aching for something they did not have.

“What?”

“Would you like to see what Kenobi did to me through my eyes?”

Bane recalled the last time Vader—or that is, who Vader had once been—entered his mind.Without permission.Along with Masters Kenobi and Windu, they tried to force him to give information.The ordeal gave him nightmares for weeks.Needless to say, it had made Bane and Anakin’s already complicated relationship…even more complicated.Anakin regretted his actions immediately afterward, tried to make it up to Bane over and over.Eventually Bane came around and they were able to get close again, but neither of them forgot those dark days.

“What would be the point of showing me?” Bane challenged.

“Does there have to be a point at all?”

“Good point.”He sighed.“Whatever.You seem determined to show me, so just get on with it.I don’t want to put it off.”

As soon as the words left him, Vader reached out.His fingertips touched Bane’s forehead.Bane flinched and shut his eyes, preparing for instant pain either external or internal.

“It won’t be like that time,” Vader said slowly.

And the pain never came.Vader’s touch felt cool, not a human touch…but not one of a monster, at least not at first.Bane’s breathing slowed.He did not let himself admit Vader felt gentle for an instant.

Then Bane realizing something.This was the first nonviolent physical contact they had had in over ten years.

He opened his eyes and looked up at Vader.

“Okay, just show me already,” he said.

Then he felt it.Heat.Fire.Lava around him.Black clouds swarming in.What he could feel of his legs and arms ached, and the rest just…wasn’t there.Like half of his body had become but a ghost.He tasted ashes and his eyes burned.

“What is this…?”Bane shivered.He knew where he was.Vader’s ship headed for Naboo.But he felt someplace else.Where was this…back on Mustafar?

“This is just a taste of what it was like.The pain you feel in your arms and legs?For me, it was excruciating.”

Words echoed from afar.As they drifted in from a far off memory dragged back into the light, Vader winced, and they began to share the mental hurt of it.The words drew nearer, like darkness rising off the horizon.

“I’ve never done this with someone who wasn’t Force sensitive,” Vader said, a slight disturbance in his tone.“But we’ll see what happens when…”

A scream echoed across their minds.This had already happened in the past, and yet it was also happening right now.It echoed off the walls of the room.Bane cried out.

_“You were the Chosen One!”_

_A burning in Vader’s lungs, vision discolored as he looked up and no longer saw a man, but a monster.Not realizing it was his own reflection instead.All he felt around him were the corpses of everyone he had slain under his lightsaber.Jedi Knights who used to be his heroes.Younglings who thought he had a good heart.Countless more.To think they once believed Anakin had deserved any less than to feel this way forever._

_Vader glared at him and no longer knew the love that once drove him on.Only love that had been twisted and gnarled into hatred he could never take back.Kenobi had become the enemy and if only he could move, he could destroy his enemy like he had taken down all the rest.Only he could not move at all.He was nothing but a phantom lying in ashes that scratched his face and dug into where his limbs used to be.All he could do was scream._

_“I HATE YOU!”_

Bane’s body began to feel warm, like a warm cloak had covered him.Then it started to itch.He smelled his skin and clothes burning before the pain registered.And when it did he screamed loud enough to wake the dead.

_“You were my brother…I loved you!”_

_“I HATE YOU.”_

As Vader kept projecting the memory in Bane’s mind, the two looked at each other, and it was as if they were the same person, experiencing it at the same time.Nothing kept them apart, not time nor distance nor lack of shared thoughts.They both knew what it was to be Vader in these few moments.For now, the memory belonged to both of them completely.

It was the most twisted, fucked up sort of intimacy either of them had ever had.

“Why are you doing this?” Bane cried.

“This is how you lost Anakin Skywalker.This was his death…”Vader pressed the memory in a little deeper so it would hurt more.Bane began to cry out again, at this point completely convinced he was being burned alive.He fell back on the bed, away from Vader’s touch, but the connection remained strong.Vader stood over the bed and focused all his power on the memory.

As Bane writhed and shook, begging for release, Vader watched him and remembered when he had done the same at the hands of his old master.In his dreams he still saw the flames tearing apart his shell, damning him to his coffin that forced him to keep breathing.And he remembered how he woke up every time wishing Kenobi had been merciful and struck him down instead, but no, he had to pretend to be the good one and walked away.

Vader wished he were dead.

Seeing someone else suffer the way he had suffered years ago—if only in the physical sense of his pain—was not new to Vader.He had projected memories like this before onto Jedi he hunted down, just before he killed them of course.Just one of many Sith abilities that Sidious taught him.It gave him pleasure knowing that someone else finally understood his darkest moment in their final ones.

But Bane was not a Jedi, and he had been one of Anakin’s favorites.They had a history.

Did he _really_ want Bane to feel everything he felt?

Did this give him pleasure or something else?

He took his time when he left Bane’s mind.Exiting the mind was twice as dangerous as entering and he had learned the hard way that rushing it could have fatal consequences.As the Force retracted away, Vader took the memory with him that would always be permanently attached to him.It moved away from Bane until it was no longer his to experience again.For Bane, the moment was now little more than that of a vivid dream he could have sworn was real.But for Vader it would always be real and part of his origin.

And just like that they were back in the ship.The fires of Mustafar and the last image of Kenobi were far away, and Vader had been surviving in the suit for ten years.The world had been set back in place

Bane stared up at him, gasping for air, still recovering from the sensation.They looked at each other, both realizing they had not been this close in a long time.

“That was…real fucked up,” Bane said, no other words coming coming to mind to describe it.

“Interesting observation.”Vader pulled away.“Well, now you know a little of it.”

“I know…”He held his head, hiding his face, red eyes still glazed over.“I still don’t understand what happened to y—to _Anakin_.”

“What’s there to understand?He died that day.Destroyed.Once he was burned away, Vader was all that remained.”

Bane groaned and rolled over on the bed until his face hit the pillow.

“You and your fucking metaphors.”

“You did once tell Anakin he should have been a poet,” he reflected.Had he not just shared a memory with Bane, he probably might have choked him or broken one of his limbs right there.Instead, Vader stared at the smaller figure and wondered when he would be able to do this with Bane again.Perhaps after Naboo.They could storm the Jedi Temple, or see the greatest things the Galactic Empire had to offer.And once again they could be one in the same for a little while.

Whatever had just happened between them, Vader only knew one thing.

He wanted more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soooo I don't know if this is an actual Force power in the "new canon" or not but I've been wanted to do this in a fanfic for a LONG ASS time. If Bane was Force sensitive then it could have been even more fun to do but oh well. I really enjoyed trying this out


	9. Chapter 9

The guards stood frozen, hiding fear behind their helmets as Vader’s shuttle landed on the platform.Theed was quiet after dark thanks to the Empire’s curfew on the city, the streets dimly illuminated by orb lights, all leading back to the Palace.The silence only reminded them of what it had been like before the Empire, when the city was allowed to be alive.

Seeing Vader approach them lightsaber in hand did not surprise them.But the thin, weary looking Duros following close behind who looked somewhat familiar certainly did.They tensed up and stood a little taller as Vader stopped and stood in front of them.

“I’m here on personal business assigned by the Emperor.”

“Of course, Lord Vader.”The guards nodded.They knew better than to question.

“I would prefer if you stayed out of my way and let me handle this myself.”

“Yes, Lord Vader.”One of them commed the other guards to tell them to stay in their current positions.“The traitor was last reported as having activity within the Royal Palace.We tried to locate the tracker but it seemed they caught on and we lost the signal.We’ve been unable to locate them since but the Palace was put on lockdown, so they’re still inside.”

“Assuming your security is remotely effective.”Vader walked on past them and Bane hurried to keep up.“Bane, can you follow orders without question?”

“Probably.”Bane was starting to remember why he had always hated being ordered around on a bounty hunting job.He had only been comfortable being alone or being in charge.Otherwise he was simply miserable.And to make matters worse it seemed that Vader loved ordering people around.

“It seems that this traitor is only one person.An informant gathering data on Imperial security in the city.I want you to help me trap them within the palace so we can stop them.”

“Oh there’s a ‘we’ now?”

“Shut up,” Vader snapped.“I don’t need your smart mouth today.”The guards opened the doors for them and they walked inside.The lights were dim and made the palace seem even larger than in the daylight.Their footsteps echoed on the polished marble, each pace bringing back memories of his last visit here.Padmé’s grave was not far from here.Less than two miles, in one of the sanctuaries where they buried the royalty.If he could have picked her resting place, he could not have found a better one.

Maybe he could pick Bane’s…

“We’re going to split up and track them down.I’ve already surgically put a tracking device in your neck so I’ll always know where you are.Can you handle it on your own?”

“Wait…you decide to tell me that _just now_?”Bane gaped at him.Fucking classic Skywalker. _‘I love you too, Cad…oh, by the way, I’m married to Senator Amidala, just thought you should know.See you next weekend?’_ “When did you have that happen?”

“In the medbay of course, while you were recovering,” Vader said simply.

“And let me guess, if I try to run away you can detonate it and kill me?”

Vader stopped walking and turned to face him.Did that question hit a nerve?

“Why don’t you try making a run for it and find out for yourself?”

Bane shrugged it off, completely forgetting that Anakin had once told him about his past as a slave chip, that he still had a deactivated slave chip somewhere in his body.After catching a very drunk Anakin in the refresher slicing at his wrists with a dull blade, Bane learned the story in bits and pieces.Apparently that explained a lot of Anakin’s reasons for self harm…he needed to get that chip out of him.But for now Anakin and Vader remained separate individuals in Bane’s mind.

He headed the opposite direction of Vader, clutching his jacket close to him.One thing he hated about Naboo, he was always cold there, especially now with the clothing Vader gave to him.He kept looking around the corridors and staircases, all hauntingly empty save for the occasional guard who did little more than acknowledge his presence and continue on.It must be common knowledge that he worked for Vader now.

Trying to focus on the task at hand proved to be difficult, as Bane had not done work such as this for years now.The old pace of thinking, processing, plotting the next moves…it seemed so far away yet it had once come as second nature to him.At his best it had come as easy as breathing.Now he struggled to pay attention.He’d rather wander around the palace and find a place to hide or something pointless to steal.Childish behavior, but enjoyable.

Would he ever be the bounty hunter he used to be?Probably not.But it was worth giving it a try to see if he still had what it took.

He bit his bottom lip, contemplating just what sort of traitor they were up against.He had not even considered the level of danger they were putting themselves in.If the Emperor sent Vader to take care of it that meant this was no trivial matter.In fact, it was quite likely they were walking right into a trap.

That made Bane stop walking and really think.Vader had nearly killed him once and was not bothered by it.Suppose Vader was using Bane as bait to catch the traitor, right this minute.Suppose all of this had just been a setup so Bane could be caught and killed right before Vader swept in to save the day for the Empire.

The more he dwelled on this possibility the more Bane accepted it as the truth.Nothing else made sense to him.He had always been a pawn of the Empire ever since his incarceration so why would it stop with Vader?He was just being used for the last time.

_Even if the tracking device is a bluff, I’m still dead.Vader is waiting for the traitor to kill me and if it’s not this time, he’ll use me as bait for the next mission,_ Bane thought, glancing around his new surroundings.While he had been thinking deeply he had headed upstairs to one of the meeting rooms of the palace.Fancy chairs lined up in rows surrounding a marble desk and a larger chair where the Queen of Naboo would sit.A few other seats were positioned behind the Queen’s chair for bodyguards and the like.The plants surrounding it still remained in healthy condition and the large windows looked out to the spectacle of a city.

_So I’m going to die soon…whatever.Was going to happen sooner or later, anyway._

He walked over to the Queen’s chair and sat down, glancing around the room to see the view.So this is what royalty felt like.After a minute he put his feet up on the marble desk and rested his hands behind his head.If he was going to die, he might as well get comfortable beforehand.

As his mind wandered aimlessly, Bane began to hear footsteps approaching.Quietly as possible he slipped out of the chair and got down behind the desk.He reached for the blaster at his side and held his breath.The door opened.Someone was walking in the room, treading lightly and panting hard.

Bane took one last breath before standing up and aiming the blaster at them.When he realized he was looking at a Togrutan boy no older than fifteen or sixteen years, he froze.The Togrutan’s reaction to being discovered gave away that this indeed was the traitor they were looking for.

“Are there more of you?” Bane asked.

The Togrutan shook his head.

“Don’t lie to me.”Bane aimed for his head.“Now are there more of you or not?”

He should have noticed the gleam in the Togrutan’s eye.But it was too late.He really had lost his edge after all.Before he had fully turned around and saw the second figure, a Human female standing up from behind the bodyguards’ chairs and aiming her rifle at Bane’s head, he felt that he had already lost.She looked at him with a mix of hatred and disgust and considering that she was a rebel, Bane could not blame her.He waited, patiently, for her to pull the trigger and be done with it.

Instead of the world going black, Bane froze.He didn’t want to move.Vader’s plan had worked, so what was the point of fighting back?

A shudder moved its way through the room, like an impending darkness.Both the Rodian and the Human suddenly dropped their weapons and their eyes got big.Startled, Bane stepped back and watched them and wondered if this was still part of the trap.Only for both traitors to clutch at their throats.They cried out, gasping, unable to speak.Bane had seen this happen before.

Behind him, he heard Vader’s breathing draw closer.The traitors were lifted into the air, still conscious but close to death, making Bane wonder why Vader was drawing out their last moments so painfully.When both of them fell dead, Vader grabbed Bane by the shoulder and forced him to turn around, eyes practically glowing with rage.

“What were you doing?Did you _want_ them to kill you?”

“That was the plan.You don’t have to pretend otherwise with me,” Bane said simply.

Vader only responded with silence.His grip on Bane’s shoulder tightened.

“You thought I was using you as bait for the traitors.”

“Why wouldn’t you?I’m expendable.”Bane shrugged.

“Not to me.”Vader turned his back.

Before Bane could ask what the hell that meant, he was ordered to leave the Palace for Vader’s shuttle.On the walk back, the guards escorted him through the Palace and down the street, not saying a word, although Bane could feel the tension in that they had no idea what had happened inside.Back at the shuttle, he was left to pace around inside and imagine the many different ways Vader would and could kill him for nearly costing the mission.The droids ignored him, sticking to their tasks.

He had to wait nearly an hour before Vader finally returned.When he did, Vader still ignored him just long enough to send the Emperor a message about the mission’s success.From the other room, Bane sat in his cabin, holding his head, praying Vader would not torture him again.As the door opened, Vader stepped in and approached him.Bane held his breath.

“At the least, you succeeded in locating the traitors.But had I not intervened, you would have been killed, and I would have to start all over in finding a personal bounty hunter,” Vader said.“I shouldn’t have to tell you that your actions were less than satisfactory.”

“Does that mean I’m fired?”

“If that’s what you want, then too bad.I’m keeping you, but next time you’ll do a better job or I’ll have to discipline you.”  
Bane scowled.He wasn’t a damn child or a dog.Maybe he was in Vader’s mind, though.

“Any questions, Bane?”

“Do you want me to apologize?” he muttered.

“You were pathetic.You made me save your life.So yes, you should apologize to me.”

Tempting as it was to risk a smart ass remark, Bane found it in him to say the most sincere apology he could muster.He thought it would not be unlike Skywalker to make him apologize too, although those had been under very different circumstances.

“That’s better.I’ll be in my chambers.And I’d rather not be disturbed.”

“Understood.”Bane didn’t move an inch until Vader was gone.Then he breathed a long sigh of relief and collapsed on the bed to sleep off all the tension.

Bane awoke to an odd quiet.The ship’s hum of travel in hyperspace loomed around.He could hear the droids outside the door working on the controls.But there was no sign they were speaking to Vader.In fact, unlike before when Bane could hear that ominous mechanical breathing in every place on the shuttle, it had ceased.

Wary, he sat up and left the room.Jaytoo was minding his own business in the cockpit.Still no sign of Vader.

“Hey, Jaytoo.Where’s Lord Vader?” Bane snapped.

“He’s resting in a deep meditative sleep inside his chamber.I should warn you, he does not usually like to be seen in his current state.”

“And what state is that?”  
“Removed from the suit.”

“Oh…”Bane bit his lip.So Vader wanted to hide what he really looked like behind all that leather.What was he hiding exactly?

What was the purpose for the suit for that matter?Did it give Vader powers he did not have when he was Skywalker?Was it intended to make him unrecognizable?

As much as he hated it, Bane felt curiosity back there.To see that body he once knew every inch of.To look on the man he once gave everything to only to lose it all.

“I recognize that look,” Jaytoo chirped.

“Huh?”

“I have seen that look on sentients before.It means you are thinking of doing the exact opposite of what I told you to do.Or in this case, _not_ to do.”

“Smart little droid.”Bane was already turning to leave and head down the hall to Vader’s chamber.“If you don’t tell him I was in there, I’ll give you an oil bath when we get back to Mustafar.”

The droid’s head nearly popped off at that.

“What?But…that would be lying.But I haven’t had an oil bath in so long…!”

While Jaytoo contemplated the ethics and morality at stake of betraying his Lord, Bane walked carefully to the back room and opened the door.He saw the same sort of large bacta tank that had been in the Mustafar palace’s medbay.Only this time there was a figure floating inside, barely visible in the murky liquid.

Bane dared step closer, peering in.The figure was hooked up with a set of straps and pulleys so they could hover in the bacta while keeping their body slack.A breathing mask was attached to the face, and judging by the fact that they did not look up when Bane entered, the Duros could only assume they were fast asleep.

The figure’s eyes were closed.Bane noticed the face first.It was the same face Vader revealed when he took off the mask.As deformed as it was, the scar on the eye was the same, and Bane recognized the jaw and nose shape.There was no denying it.This man was once Anakin Skywalker.

As he looked down to the rest of Vader’s body, a chill ran up his spine with horror.Where there should have been arms and legs, Bane only saw the pale milky white of the bacta.All four limbs ended in crude, unnatural stubs.Mechno attachments hung from them, looking like they had been forced in before in cruel manners that left behind more scarring.

But that was not even the worst of it.

Every inch of the man’s skin was covered in severe burn scars.Grafts had been etched into certain places and looked off color and out of place.The complexion was pale, having not faced sunlight for what must have been many years now, constantly trapped beneath the suit.Whatever had happened to him left just a few remnants of a person.A person who had been chewed up and spit out to resemble some hybrid of a machine and a monster.

“Gods…what happened to you?” Bane whispered half to himself.

Before he could stop himself, Bane put his hand on the glass separating him from Vader.It felt strange seeing him this exposed and vulnerable after so many years apart.

Even in this way, Bane remembered the old attraction that drew him to Anakin.He had craved Anakin in so many ways.He desired the anger between them that drove them to do fucked up things to themselves and to each other.The desperation for tenderness that came out in soft touches and kisses.The aches and frustrations they took out on each other, physically and mentally, leaving each other gasping for air.Gods, he had been so into that damn Jedi…would have eaten him alive given the chance.

As he was starting to realize, that desire for Anakin had never gone away.It was still there.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> After almost two months I FINALLY HAVE ANOTHER CHAPTER TO THIS FIC HOLY SHIT.
> 
> I'm never giving up on this fic. Life is just so busy and other things have taken priority. But the gay sad old men will have their fic forever!!

When Anakin met up with him at the hotel on Coruscant, Cad Bane could instantly tell something disturbed the Jedi.He didn’t smile when Bane gave him some light teasing, and kept getting distracted as they poured their drinks.When they got to their room Bane tried to get him chatting about idle matters, but Anakin stayed quiet, studying the ice cubes in his glass.Bane plopped down on the bed and kicked off his boots.A quick gesture of invitation prompted Anakin to curl up next to him.

“What’s the matter?” Bane finally asked.“Come on, talk to me already.”

These days it was almost a dumb question.The war was getting worse, and that meant it also got worse for both of them.Anakin would lose more clones under his command and see the worst of the horrors of warfare, while Bane’s jobs from either side involved more exhausting,gruesome work.And neither of them had a way out of it.That was the reality of it.

But Anakin had not been this nonverbal in ages.And he could put up with a _lot_ before it came down to that.

“I just got back from a mission to…Zygerria.”He spat out the word like poison.

Bane sat up.He knew all about the slave trade on that hellish planet.He had once been hired to steal sensitive information about the Queen of Zygerria, information that ended up getting her assassinated, only to have her replaced by Miraj Scintel who was even worse.That added to what Anakin told him of his childhood spent in slavery…

“Fuck.”He wrapped his arm around Anakin’s middle and pulled him close.“How bad?”

“Pretty bad.Our cover was blown.Ahsoka and Obi-Wan were sold.And the queen made me her…her…”

Bane grabbed his hand and squeezed it.This definitely wasn’t how he had been hoping to spend his night.He heard Anakin choke down a sob.

“And when that was all over, I got back home to find Padmé had left me divorce papers.She said it wasn’t working and we never should have gotten married.”

“What a bitch.”Bane kissed the top of his head and gently ruffled his messy locks.

“It’s just been a really…really shitty week.I’m sorry…I should have canceled on tonight.I’m just going to be a miserable wet rag.No fun to be around.”

“Shut the hell up.We’re going to have a hot bath and good food and we’ll get you nice and drunk, all right?”Sex could wait.Bane was surprised at how much he really didn’t mind when it came down to being there for someone else, especially Anakin.The poor kid had been through too much already.Even then, the bastard in Bane felt a small victory in that he no longer had to share Anakin with Senator Amidala.

Anakin forced a small smile.

“Okay, Cad.Thank you.”

* * *

Back in his cabin, Bane tried to rest, but the images he saw would not leave him.  He saw Vader’s mangled body when he closed his eyes and Vader’s deathly mask when he opened them.

On and off of course, he contemplated killing himself with whatever means he could find on the ship.Then again he would probably get caught and severely punished, and he did not feel like enduring all that for nothing.The droids probably had been trained to keep an eye out for such behavior too.Desperate, Bane hunted the meager supplies given to him for the journey and discovered, to his relief, that there was a fresh pack of cigarettes and a lighter.In less than half an hour he had consumed six of them.

Jaytoo peeked his head in the now smoke filled cabin.

“What did you see in there?Oh, if Lord Vader finds out I let you in there I’ll be turned into spare parts for sure.”

Bane looked at him and found himself laughing.

“You’re starting to remind me of my old droid.Name was Todo Three-Sixty.”

“Where is your old droid now?”

“I lost him.When stormtroopers arrested me and took me away from my hideout, Todo was left behind.They probably raided the place, took all my stuff, reprogrammed him as an Imperial unit or just got rid of him,” he said, voice trailing off as the old memories resurfaced.Those were times he had not thought back to in a while.

He heard Vader approaching and quickly tried to appear asleep, although he knew it would be pointless.Vader always seemed to know more than he let on.It did not shock him at all to see Vader returned to his full suit form, which had also been freshly polished.But this time he saw Vader differently since he now knew what was hiding underneath.

“I see you found the cigs I had delivered just for you.”

Bane nodded in thanks as he took one last drag.

“I really appreciate that…sir.”

“Stay on good behavior and you’ll keep getting them, maybe even a brand of higher quality.I’m not surprised that you’re still a smoker after all these years.”

Back then, Anakin was fond of stealing Bane’s cigs.Smoking was strictly forbidden on Jedi Temple grounds, but that never stopped young Skywalker from sneaking up on the roof to have a couple.He always binged when he visited Bane…and not just on cigs.Alcohol, painkillers, whatever else was lying around Bane’s place.Drove him crazy seeing how fast the strongest Jedi in the galaxy could fall apart like that.

“Are you kidding?I’d never be able to quit.”

Vader stood like a statue, giving Bane a chill as he could not tell if Vader was watching him or just idly staying there with nothing better to do.

“Do…you need something, sir?” he finally dared to ask.

“Did you like what you saw?”

Bane stopped cold.

“Come again, sir?” he asked, but it was too late to pretend.

“Don’t lie to me.I knew you entered that room and watched me in the bacta tank.It’s been many years since you looked at me like that.Since anyone did, for that matter.”

_Can’t imagine why,_ Bane wanted to mutter, but he held his tongue.

“What’s your point?”

“Next time you want to look at me without my suit, it had better be with my consent.I’m sure you can understand that.”

He nodded without hesitation.That had been a mistake, looking in like that.Jaytoo really should have stopped him than let him get in this mess.

“An eye for an eye.Now, to make things even between us, I want to take a look at you.”

The Duros nearly choked on his cig filter.

“What?”

“Undress for me.Let me _see_ you.”

After waiting to see if Vader would dismiss it as a shitty joke, which never arrived, Bane swung his legs over the bed and stood up.A premature humiliation crept up as he recalled the last time those same eyes had looked over him.He had been younger and stronger and had not gone through the malnourishment and exhaustion of all those years thanks to the Empire, until he was stuck with whatever they failed to destroy.Why did it have to be so long ago?

“I don’t think you’ll like what you see,” he admitted, hoping that would make Vader shut off the stupid idea.What was he playing at?

“Do it anyway.I want to see you.”

_At least one thing hasn’t changed.Poor guy could never flirt to save his life._

“Fine.Whatever.”His cheeks began to turn green as he let his trousers drop to his ankles.One leg had a long, deep scar from a nexu that had split the kneecap.Then, with hesitation, Bane slowly stripped off his tunic, revealing the muscles hardened by prison labor as well as the form that had aged in the past decade or so.His back was noticeably weaker and his skin pale and taut in places.But what embarrassed him the most were the deep markings from when the Empire tortured him during his imprisonment.Lines showing where he had been cut open, lashed, and burned, overlapping older scar tissue.He looked like a wreck.

“They beat you a lot,” Vader remarked.

“I misbehaved a lot.”He shrugged.

“Still, I do not like dislike what I see.”

“Well, what a relief.Can I put my clothes back on now?”

“Come, now.I haven’t gotten a good look yet.I need to study everything I’ve missed since last time.”Vader stepped closer to him.

Bane didn’t move, staring at him and wondering if he should be afraid.

“Vader, what do you want?”

He felt the strong leather gloves cup his chin and tilt his head up.The mechanical breathing was so close it seemed to vibrate throughout the room, and Vader leaned down until Bane saw his red eyes reflected in the mask.Time seemed to stop for a few moments as the tension seethed almost to the breaking point.Memories flooded back.Those hands now machines and cold had once been so warm and affectionate.Those eyes once reflected every star.

And despite everything, the years and the horrors separating them, Bane felt something stir in him.The old desires he had for Anakin Skywalker.The way Anakin could make him forget everything for even just a moment.He missed it.He missed it so much it had broken his heart until he refused to think of it anymore and let his love harden to stone.Gods, he had been so weak for it.That damn Jedi had done things to him that made him beg like a whore.

There was no way Anakin was completely gone.If being this close to the monster named Vader made his heart beat his loud, that Jedi _had_ to still be alive.Somewhere deep inside, barely breathing, but alive all the same.

_My old love is in there…somewhere.Maybe I’m just crazy or desperate or both, but I can hear it in him.I_ feel _it._

His heart was pounding now.Vader’s other hand rested on Bane’s shoulder before slowly moving down Bane’s chest.In response to being touched in such a way for the first time in many, many months, Bane let out a soft gasp and leaned his head back.He dared not think when was the last time he even got laid or he’d be real depressed.Vader was tracing one of his largest scars now.

“I actually remember this one, believe it or not.”

“I remembered one of yours too.”Bane looked up at him again and held his breath.

When Vader spoke again it was in the strangest tone Bane had heard from him yet.It was gentle, soft, and drew him in as if he wanted more of it.

“Do you think you could make me feel again?”

Feel again?What was that supposed to mean?

“Are you asking what I think you’re asking?”Bane smiled a little.“Is this why you went out of your way to find me?So I could be your little _pet_?”

Vader’s grip on his chin tightened a little.Just enough of a reminder that he was in control and could just as soon kill the Duros.It was enough of an answer.

“If you can’t make me feel, no one can.Everyone else has failed me already.Turned away when I offered the best for them.Padmé, Ahsoka, Obi-Wan, the Jedi.But you…you haven’t abandoned me.You saw me outside of my suit and you weren’t repulsed.”

“Is this what you want from me?”Bane couldn’t look away from him.Vader had to be insane to think they could have a shot at getting a spark of what they used to have.In those days they had had a rivalry on the outside and too much in common on the inside.Now?Both of them had been fucked up beyond recognition.Vader was a monster stuck in a machine and Bane had not been himself in years.

“Do you want me?” Vader asked in an almost demanding tone.“Do you want to know me again?”

Bane slowly closed his eyes before he nodded.Something in him screamed that this was a deadly mistake, that Vader was the last person he should be tempting this with.Which was most likely true.He couldn’t trust this Sith Lord for a second.Those hands were gentle now but suppose Vader’s sadistic side came out and he decided he’d rather torture his bounty hunter than fuck him.

But there were too many remnants of Anakin…too many reminders of the Jedi he once loved.It ached too much to be this close to intimacy and have to turn it away.

Truth was, Bane needed to feel again too.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> BACK WITH THIS FIC TOO.
> 
> Took so long because full time job got in the way. That and this was one of the trickier sex scenes I've had to write. This chapter is all about angsty old men fucking medical kink thrown in.

Vader led him back to his chambers and turned off the lights until only the bacta tank was illuminated in the center.It glowed an enchanting blue that seemed to calm both their pounding heartbeats.He strictly ordered the droids to stay out of the room until he called them.

“Leave your clothes on the floor,” he said in a tone still firm but with a hint of gentleness that Bane had not heard in years.Bane had to hope that was a sign of Anakin still in there.

“Yes, sir.”Bane dropped his trousers and tunic.“You like being called that?”

“That or ‘master.’”Vader stood in front of the bacta tank and dropped his cape.Then he lifted his arms and two mechanical pulleys slowly lowered from the ceiling.Two metal rings with soft padding on the interior slipped through his arms until they were at his shoulders, then connected at the back with a latch, forming a lift for him.

“How did you find that?”

“I built it.What else did you think?”

“Of course.You were always good at building things.Fixing them too.”Bane knew Vader would have a snippy comment for that.He stood back and watched as the pulleys lifted Vader until he was hovering just above the tank.From there another set of mechanical arms descended from their hiding place on the ceiling.Carefully, and systematically, they began to remove each piece of Vader’s suit, starting with the helmet and ending with the boots.They left only the mechno limbs which now, against the pale skin covered in scars, looked alien.Out of place.A macabre mix of machine and…remnants of a man.

Bane watched, fascinated by the presentation and how the machines moved so in sync with each other it could almost pass off as a dance.Seeing the exterior that struck such terror in all who knew Vader…now stripped away to reveal the torn, ragged flesh beneath.Until Bane was face to face with what was left of the man he once knew.

Vader looked down at him for a few moments, clenching his fists.Then the last mechanical arm attached a breathing mask to him and his chest swelled with fresh air, his face slightly contorted as the breathing caused him some sort of sharp pain that was unavoidable.Then Vader spoke. To Bane’s shock, the voice carried throughout the room.

“Get in here with me, Bane.”

“Yes…master,” Bane managed to spit out as he kicked off his undergarments.The second time being naked in front of Vader did not bother him as much.A part of him could feel the arousal starting to awaken again.Something Bane had not felt in years.

As he undressed, Vader waved his hand and was subsequently lowered into the tank inch by inch.His body sagged with relief as the liquid began to envelop him.It must feel amazing compared to the harsh cold air of the room.Vader leaned his head back and let out a long sigh just before he went under.From above, Bane watched the way what was left of his limbs stretched and twisted, the mechno moving with them in fluid motion.Bacta must make Vader a lot more flexible than the suit.

“This making you hard?” Bane teased.

Vader looked up at him.

“Shut your mouth and get in here.”

“Yes, master.”He approached the tank and walked up the steps along the side.The same machine attached a breathing mask to him as well.The air tasted strangely sweet.From this angle Vader looked much less threatening…as he hovered there letting the bacta allowed temporary relief from what must be constant physical agony.Then Bane gripped the edge, lowered himself into his waist, and let go.

Now he understood.The bacta felt incredible.On his aging bones, his sore muscles…even his eyes were soothed by the liquid.The regular aches and pains moved to the back of his mind to the point that he could almost forget about them.Old wounds tingled with a level of healing they had never known.It was Bane’s turn to lean his head back and let out a moan.

“I forgot how good bacta tanks are…” he murmured to himself.He could hardly hear his own voice but Vader seemed to catch it.

“No talking.Just take it in.Like before.”

Now that he was floating right across from Vader, Bane felt weak.Vulnerable.Even seeing Vader up close, something about the man turned monster still sent chills up Bane’s spine.Any bone in his body could be snapped with a snap of Vader’s fingers.

“Trust me,” Vader purred, the echo of his voice vibrating in the tank.His mechno fingers curled over Bane’s chin and pulled his face closer to him until their breathing masks bumped each other.

Bane looked up.Were it not for the mask, he would forget to breathe.His body began to respond in ways he could not control, being this close to another naked body he used to know like the back of his own hand.His chest tightened.His eyes fluttered.

“Getting hard already?Such an eager little bounty hunter.”

_Fuck…I’m not that desperate, am I?_ Bane kicked his legs a little as blood rushed to his cock.Why was Vader’s _voice alone_ doing these things to him?

The cool mechno fingers worked their way down his neck, to his chest and stomach.Then a slight push and Bane’s back was against the glass wall of the tank.He let out another moan, hoping for more.The mechno hand was down to his hips now, inches from his erection.Bane dared glance down and saw that Vader’s cock was hardening too, and he selfishly thanked the stars that whatever hell Vader had been through spared those parts of him.Looked almost as good as he remembered, too.

“Ask for it, Bane…ask me.”The very tips of his fingers slid down Bane’s shaft.Ice cold.And it felt ten times better in the bacta.

“P-please…please…”He needed this.He needed to be touched like his body was desirable again.He needed to feel like he was a person.He needed to feel _wanted._

Right on cue, Vader’s erection brushed against his.Bane grabbed the back of Vader’s neck and nuzzled the side with his breathing mask.And the subsequent sound rising from Vader’s chest drove Bane crazy.Their legs touched as Vader gripped both their cocks at the same time.His fingertips dug in a bit, exploring what would get a reaction out of him as the Duros kept moving the breathing mask along his neck and torso.And when Vader made another loud groan…and the sound echoed throughout the whole room…what Bane wouldn’t give to be able to use his teeth and tongue on him right now.

“I still say I’m bigger than you,” he heard Vader mutter.

Bane tried not to laugh.Back in the day they had actual measuring contests and although Bane _knew_ he was bigger by at least a quarter of an inch, Anakin insisted he was bigger every time.To this day, it seemed.

“Fuck you,” Bane muttered.

“Then turn around.Now.”

“Yes, master.”Bane pressed his chest against the cool glass and sighed longingly.Now both of Vader’s mechno hands were stroking his cock.Just at the right pace so he was further aroused but left wanting more.

He moaned again.Felt Vader’s chest pressing against his back.

“You have so many marks.You’re so…damaged.”Vader stroked him just a tad faster.“Do you still like it up the ass like I remember?”

Bane did not even hesitate before nodding.Oh, fuck, it had been too long.

“We always did use bacta for lube.It makes this easier.”Vader’s mask scratched the back of his neck as he began to position himself, moving his legs to either side.

The stroking had moved to an even slower pace now, so much so it was almost worse than nothing at all.Bane tried his best to relax.He closed his eyes and clenched his fists.Just before he felt two cold mechno fingers slide up in him.He bucked his hips in shock.

“It’s been a little while…” he said, unsure if he was lying.He might have had a quickie with another prisoner or a guard back in the Imperial facility.Honestly he could not recall for sure.The memories were too scattered.

“I can tell,” Vader answered.“Good thing we have all the time we need.”One hand clamped around Bane’s throat, the other still between his legs, carefully moving inside him.

Bane rammed his knees against the glass and let out a sharp whimper, unable to control the way his body responded to Vader’s movements.For several minutes Vader continued playing with his ass, curling his fingers, thrusting, twisting…every trick under the book.When he finally pulled them out he gripped Bane’s cock and stroked it hard, making the Duros almost choke on the sweet air filling his lungs.He felt Vader’s arm around him and pull him close and their scar tissue scratched against each other.

“Are you ready for me?” he purred.

Again, he nodded.

It didn’t hurt as much as he expected it to.But as he felt Vader slowly slide inside of him, Bane arched his back and pressed his palms against the glass to steady himself.He wanted to cry out, wanted to beg for it, but every sound was muffled by the mask.Vader began rocking his hips back and forth, working up to a pace that corresponded with stroking Bane’s cock.

He was going crazy.And judging by how hard Vader shoved him against the wall he could feel Vader going crazy too.

Memories collided in front of him.His first time with Anakin, when they had to get so drunk they could not care less that one was a Jedi and the other was a criminal.The later times when they pushed the boundaries, got out the ropes and toys, indulged in receiving pain and causing pain.And then when all the fucking was set aside for what could only be described as simple, sweet lovemaking.And all of it rushed back at once to him like they were reliving it again.

Then he remembered.Vader must be entering his mind again.Going back to those memories like before.Playing each one to take them both back to a better time.

Bane wasn’t sure how much he could take.The bacta soothing his body mixed with Vader fucking him senseless without any regard for his comfort, was sending Bane over the edge.

Suddenly he bucked his hips, eyes watering.He choked.

“Found it.All too easy.”Vader rammed into his g-spot again.And again.

He tried to scream.Vader knew him so well.

“Still a slut after all this time.That makes two of us, doesn’t it?”

A third time, Bane nodded.Just as he was taking in a deep breath, a sudden wet sensation rushed over his face.With one pull, Vader had yanked away the breathing mask.Then he clamped his hand over Bane’s mouth.Vader thrust harder.

Bane pounded the glass with his palms, shaking uncontrollably.Within seconds his lungs began to burn with lack of oxygen.With each thrust the glass walls vibrated.He could feel Vader trembling and shuddering against him.

“You’ll get the mask back when you cum for me…”

_You’re fucking insane!_ he thought. _I can’t…_ Seconds grew longer as his vision began to go blurry.His head grew light.He wanted to scream it hurt so much.

He looked up and Vader only tightened his grip.Two fingers found their way inside Bane’s mouth and he bit down on them with a slight cry, desperate for air.

More memories.Anakin’s young, perfect body laid out in front of him.Screaming and begging to be hurt even more.

When that familiar warm sensation filled up inside him and Vader squeezed the head of his cock, Bane couldn’t take it any longer.Just as his vision was starting to go black he came hard with a muffled wail.He watched as Vader caught all of it in his hand, then locked it in his fist so it wouldn’t leak out.Seconds before he passed out Vader shoved him to the surface and let him breathe.

Chest heaving, Bane clung to the edge of the tank and coughed, still shaking from how hard he orgasmed.Vader moved up behind him and thrust his hand full of cum against Bane’s mouth.Not even giving the Duros the chance to mutter, “Are you serious?”

“Clean up the mess you made.”

All he could do was nod and slowly suck on Vader’s fingers until they were spotless.He had to admit he even liked tasting his own cum sometimes.And Vader’s mechno fingers felt amazing.

“Good boy.”Vader traced Bane’s back before turning him around so he faced him.“Very good.But I do miss more of what your mouth can do.You can show me more when we get back to Mustafar.”

“Yes, sir…” he managed to say, still getting his breath back.“Shall I get out now?”

“No.Stay.Put the mask back on and stay with me until you’re ready for more.”

_More…?How much more can I take after that?_ he wondered, wary of how much his stamina had been affected over the years.Fuck, he must be getting old.

But he could not argue.After putting the breathing mask on Bane went back to floating in the bacta with him.After a few minutes his breathing returned to normal pace.Vader kept exploring his muscles and Bane returned the gesture, gently running his fingertips over the scars.He could not tell if Vader liked being touched this way or not but either way, he never told Bane to stop.

Bane had no idea that his exhaustion eventually let him fall asleep.Right there beneath the surface.And that Vader kept him close while he slept, studying him and petting him like he would a work of art, knowing that this was the most intimate they would ever be for the rest of their lives.

“Good boy…”


End file.
